If you’re looking for the NYT Connections hints and answers for August 2, we’ve got you covered here .

Hey there, Connectors! I hope you had a wonderful weekend. I’m very happy to be back here with you for another weekday run of this column.

I like to get things started on Mondays with a fun, upbeat song. It helps life my mood at the beginning of the week, sometimes even making me sing and dance along. I hope it does the same for you too.

I’m going to offer up something a little different this time. It hasn’t been the easiest time for me lately, and this somehow really helped pull me out of a funk.

I had no idea there was a Sesame Street edition of NPR’s Tiny Desk series until a couple of days ago. This is so gosh darn cute and it made me smile when I needed to. Thanks for putting it in my recommendations, YouTube:

Before we start, we’ve got a lovely community on Discord , where we chat about Connections , the rest of the NYT games and all kinds of things. You’re more than welcome to join us!

Also, my weekend editions of this column are available over on my newsletter, Pastimes . I sometimes write about other things that are on my mind there as well.

FEATURED | Frase By Forbes ™

Unscramble The Anagram To Reveal The Phrase

Today’s NYT Connections hints and answers for Monday, August 3 are coming right up. Let’s get rolling!

Connections is a free New York Times daily word game that you can play on the NYT ’s website or Games app. If you have an NYT All Access or Games subscription, you can access the Connections archive, which includes every previous game.

Connections presents you with a grid of 16 words (sometimes phrases, symbols or numbers). The aim is to arrange them into four groups of four. You don’t know how they hit together or what the category for each group is: that’s what you have to figure out.

There’s only one correct solution and there are often red herrings. You can guess incorrectly three times. A fourth wrong guess, and it’s game over.

Each group is color coded. The yellow group is usually the easiest to deduce, followed by blue, green and purple. Often, the yellow and green groups have synonyms, the blues have cultural references and the purples have some kind of wordplay involved. But this is not a hard and fast rule. Be ready for curveballs – part of the fun of Connections is in how the NYT shakes things up to keep you on your toes.

As with Wordle and similar games, it’s easy to share results with your friends using an emoji-based grid. The game tracks your progress too.

Many players take pride in having long win streaks or getting a reverse rainbow – correctly guessing the purple, blue, green and yellow groups in that order with no mistakes. That adds an extra little challenge.

Today’s NYT Connections Word List

After today’s Connections word list, I’ll give you a hint for each category. After that, I’ll reveal one word that goes into each group. Then I’ll reveal the categories, followed by the full answers.

  • NEEDLESS
  • MYRRH
  • BACKSTREET
  • TEA SET
  • NSYNC
  • SAGE
  • FLY BY
  • NAG CHAMPA
  • MINT
  • BYWAY
  • BUG FIX
  • RHYTHM
  • FOREST
  • LANE
  • HUNTER
  • ALLEY

A Hint For Today’s Connections Groups

The hints for today’s Connections categories are:

  • 🟨 Yellow group — not the typical path
  • 🟩 Green group — olive you know, this is how envious I am
  • 🟦 Blue group — ask yourself why
  • 🟪 Purple group — you might be left feeling annoyed with this one

One Answer For Each Connections Group

Be warned: we’re starting to get into spoiler territory.

Let’s take a look at one answer for each group.

  • 🟨 Yellow group — BACKSTREET
  • 🟩 Green group — SAGE
  • 🟦 Blue group — FLY BY
  • 🟪 Purple group — NEEDLESS

Today’s Connections Categories

Today’s Connections groups are...

  • 🟨 Yellow group — road less traveled
  • 🟩 Green group — shades of green
  • 🟦 Blue group — "Y" is the only vowel
  • 🟪 Purple group — starting with synonyms for “pester”

What Is Today’s Connections Answer?

Spoiler alert! Don’t scroll any further down the page until you’re ready to find out today’s Connections answers.

This is your last chance to look away.

This is your final warning!

Today’s Connections answers are...

🟨 Yellow group — road less traveled (ALLEY, BACKSTREET, BYWAY, LANE)

🟩 Green group — shades of green (FOREST, HUNTER, MINT, SAGE)

🟦 Blue group — "Y" is the only vowel (FLY BY, MYRRH, NSYNC, RHYTHM)

🟪 Purple group — starting with synonyms for "pester" (BUG FIX, NAG CHAMPA, NEEDLESS, TEA SET)

I figured pretty quickly that NAG CHAMPA had to have some wordplay going on and as I looked at the other phrases in the mix, the purples started coming together. That was mostly thanks to BUG FIX as it took me a minute of staring at TEA SET to see what the relevant part was. Clever one!

There weren't enough boy bands on the grid to form a group, so BACKSTREET (which isn't the full name of Backstreet Boys anyway) had to go with the yellows. The greens were next after I realized the fourth word had to be FOREST.

I didn’t figure out the blue category, but definitely should have. Still, I’m happy to clock up a 519th consecutive win.

How did you get on this time? Here's my grid:

Want to know more about how everything fits together? Let’s explore today’s game in more depth in my NYT Connections Answers Explained column. You can check that out by visiting my author page .

Be sure to check my blog for hints and the answer for tomorrow’s game of Connections if you need them.

P.S. I was originally planning to bring you the latest Electric Callboy song, but I think the blend of Backstreet Boys-style pop and extreme deathcore is maybe a little too intense for many folks (as much as I love it). I’m sure I’ll have plenty to say about the new album after it drops this week anyway!

Instead, I’m gonna go with a clear inspiration for said Callboy song, “I Want It That Way” by Backstreet Boys. An absolute classic. Definitely one many of you will sing along to:

Have a great day! Stay hydrated! Be kind to yourself and each other! Call someone you love!

Please follow my blog for more NYT Connections hints and help with other word games, and even some video game news, insights and analysis. I’d really appreciate that as it helps me out. If you share this column with others who play Connections, that would be lovely too. You can also read my weekend editions of this column and more of my writing at my newsletter, Pastimes .