If you’re looking for the September 21 Connections hints and answers, we’ve got you covered right here:

Hey there, Connectors! I hope your week is off to a great start.

My partner and I were supposed to go for a nice meal to celebrate our anniversary over the weekend. But we were both wiped and didn’t feel like we’d enjoy it as much as we ought to, so we delayed our restaurant plans and just spent time together at my place instead. Being together is the most important thing anyway.

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.

Today’s NYT Connections hints and answers for Tuesday, September 22 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 green, blue 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.

  • THIS
  • THAT
  • THE
  • OTHER
  • CAFE
  • PATRON
  • AGREE
  • ACCENT
  • TOUCH
  • THOSE
  • ROSE
  • NEUTRAL
  • DETAIL
  • DISAGREE
  • THESE
  • FLOURISH

Today’s NYT Connections Hints

The hints for today’s Connections categories are:

  • 🟨 Yellow group — gestures toward stuff
  • 🟩 Green group — a nice little extra
  • 🟦 Blue group — next to boxes you might strongly or somewhat check
  • 🟪 Purple group — sip without any significant emphasis

One Answer For Each NYT 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 — THOSE
  • 🟩 Green group — TOUCH
  • 🟦 Blue group — NEUTRAL
  • 🟪 Purple group — THE

Today’s NYT Connections Categories

Today’s Connections groups are...

  • 🟨 Yellow group — demonstratives
  • 🟩 Green group — embellishment
  • 🟦 Blue group — options on a multiple choice survey
  • 🟪 Purple group — beverages with acute accents removed

Today’s NYT 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 — demonstratives (THAT, THESE, THIS, THOSE)
  • 🟩 Green group — embellishment (ACCENT, DETAIL, FLOURISH, TOUCH)
  • 🟦 Blue group — options on a multiple choice survey (AGREE, DISAGREE, NEUTRAL, OTHER)
  • 🟪 Purple group — beverages with acute accents removed (CAFE, PATRON, ROSE, THE)

NEUTRAL and DISAGREE made the blues click for me, even if it did take me a moment to realize that OTHER was the fourth word I needed.

The yellows were up next, as THE didn’t quite fit. FLOURISH and DETAIL then got me the greens.

As was the case yesterday, I didn’t figure out the purple category, but I definitely should have. Certainly not the most exciting purple group I’ve ever seen. (Café and thé are French for coffee and tea, respectively.)

That win extended my streak to 569 consecutive victories.

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 think I need a jolt of energy, and maybe you do too. For today’s recommendation, let’s go with “Omen” by The Prodigy. It’s a banger:

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 .