If today’s New York Times Connections grid has you feeling puzzled, you are not alone. Puzzle #1223 brings some tricky wordplay that might send you down the wrong path at first glance. Here is what you need to know.
Here are helpful hints to guide you through today’s puzzle, with the full answers listed further down.
Today’s Connections Strategy & Commentary
Watch out for the tricky groups today. The Yellow group looks like small things but they are all marks or flaws on a surface. The Green group might catch you off guard too. These are all countries with no coastline at all. The Blue group is especially clever. Each one is the name of a European country but missing just one letter. Bulgari is missing an a. Cyrus is missing an e. Hungry is missing an a. Span is missing an i. And the Purple group is a fun twist. The first word in each answer is something people say when someone looks good. Chicken starts with chic. Coolidge starts with cool. Hippo starts with hip. Smarties starts with smart. Once you see it, it all makes sense. Take your time reading each word carefully.
Connections Hints Today: Category Clues
If you just need a gentle nudge, here are the clues for each color group:
- 🟨 Yellow Group Hint: Small marks or damage on an object’s exterior.
- 🟩 Green Group Hint: Nations with no access to the ocean.
- 🟦 Blue Group Hint: The name of a European country with one letter removed.
- 🟪 Purple Group Hint: The first part of each word describes someone with great style.
Stuck on one word? A Nick and a Scratch are both small surface marks. Laos and Paraguay are both landlocked. Hungry is almost Hungary. Smarties begins with smart. That should help you connect the dots.
Here is our result for today’s puzzle
🟨🟨🟨🟨
🟦🟩🟩🟦
🟦🟩🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩
🟦🟦🟦🟦
🟪🟪🟪🟪
⚠️ Spoiler Warning: The full answers are below. Stop scrolling now if you want to solve it yourself first.
NYT Connections Answers Today for October 16, 2026 (Puzzle #1223)
🟨 Yellow Category: Surface Imperfections
- Chip
- Mark
- Nick
- Scratch
🟩 Green Category: Landlocked Countries
- Chad
- Hungary
- Laos
- Paraguay
🟦 Blue Category: European Countries Minus A Letter
- Bulgari
- Cyrus
- Hungry
- Span
🟪 Purple Category: Starting With Words For Stylish
- Chicken
- Coolidge
- Hippo
- Smarties
Yesterday’s Answer
This is the NYT Connections answer for October 15, 2026 (Puzzle #1222).
🟨 Yellow Category: Ways To Preserve Food. Cure, Dry, Pickle, Smoke
🟩 Green Category: Things You Can Score In Sports. Basket, Goal, Run, Touchdown
🟦 Blue Category: Lowest Part. Base, Bottom, Foot, Foundation
🟪 Purple Category: Low Landforms With A Letter Changed. Cannon, Forge, Racine, Volley
For older solutions, see our Connections answers archive.
How did you do today?
Did you spot the word tricks right away or did it take an extra guess? Share your results below.
A new puzzle becomes available every midnight based on your local time zone. It appears at different times around the world including United States UTC-4 to UTC-8, Philippine Standard Time UTC+8, Australia UTC+8 to UTC+11, and New Zealand UTC+12 or UTC+13.
Check back tomorrow for more Connections hints, strategy tips, and the next answer.
