Overview:
Today’s puzzle features words describing unsteady movement, bird onomatopoeia, words that can follow ‘head,’ and desserts minus their final letters.
Several words can appear to fit more than one category, making the groups tricky to identify.
Players can use the hints below before checking the complete answers and spoilers.
The New York Times Connections puzzle for September 5, 2026, asks players to divide 16 words into four groups of four based on hidden connections. Today’s categories include unsteady movement, bird onomatopoeia, words that can follow ‘head,’ and desserts minus their last letters.
The board includes several words that can create misleading connections, making it harder to identify the intended groups at first glance.
Players looking for a little help before seeing the answers can use these category clues:
Yellow: Think about movements that are not steady.
Green: Think of sounds associated with birds.
Blue: Think about a word that can come after ‘head.’
Purple: Remove the final letter from certain desserts.
These clues point towards the four categories without immediately revealing every answer.
For players who need an extra push, one word from each category can help reveal the intended connections.
Yellow: SWAY
Green: COO
Blue: BOBBLE
Purple: PI
The four groups in today’s puzzle are:
Yellow: Move Unsteadily
Green: Bird Onomatopoeia
Blue: _____Head
Purple: Desserts Minus Last Letter
Yellow — Move Unsteadily
SWAY
TODDLE
TOTTER
WOBBLE
These words describe different forms of movement that lack steadiness.
Green — Bird Onomatopoeia
COO
GOBBLE
HONK
WARBLE
These words can represent or imitate bird sounds.
Blue — _____Head
BOBBLE
HAMMER
JUG
SLEEPY
Each word can be paired with ‘head’ to form a phrase or compound expression.
Purple — Desserts Minus Last Letter
COBBLE
PIT
TAR
TORT
Adding the final letter back to each word produces the name of a dessert.
The NYT Connections uses wordplay alongside straightforward associations. Words such as ‘WOBBLE,’ ‘BOBBLE,’ and ‘TOTTER’ can all suggest movement, creating potential distractions while players work through the board.
The Purple group particularly depends on spelling. The answers only become clear when players recognize that each word represents a dessert after adding its missing final letter.
Overall, today’s puzzle combines familiar word associations with spelling-based tricks, making careful grouping important before committing to an answer.