Yellow group focuses on blemishes, including words like DENT, DING, MAR, and SCRATCH.
Green group highlights behemoths, featuring COLOSSUS, MAMMOTH, WHALE, and WHOPPER.
Blue group centers on rude actions, with POINT, SNICKER, STARE, and WHISPER.
Purple group relates to baseball field elements, including BASE, BOX, MOUND, and PLATE.
The September 11, 2025, edition of the New York Times Connections straddles between clever wordplay and thematic challenges. Today, the solution focuses on size with some actions and baseball references, all demanding attention to literal and figurative meanings.
Some groups, such as behemoth, are immediately recognizable, but with others, like the baseball terms, transfixed observation is required to detect the pattern. This way, the behemoth puzzle glides so effortlessly with subtle linking factors and familiar associations, keeping the thinker engaged.
NYT Connections is a daily word game that presents a grid with 16 words. The player is asked to associate these into four groups of 4 based on a shared category. There are no clues as to what these categories may be. Three false attempts are allowed; a fourth one finishes the game.
Each group comes with a color code in this order: yellow, green, blue, and purple; the code usually points to synonyms or pop-culture references or is purely wordplay. The fun interaction is sharing these results via emoji grids; meanwhile, streaks or reverse rainbow patterns provide more challenges for the seasoned solver.
BOX
POINT
WHOPPER
SCRATCH
SNICKER
PLATE
MOUND
WHALE
MAR
STARE
MAMMOTH
DING
BASE
COLOSSUS
DENT
WHISPER
Yellow group — blemish: Causes imperfections or marks that add character.
Green group — behemoth: Relates to big sizes.
Blue group — rude things to do: Words connected to unkind actions or gestures.
Purple group — on a baseball field: Take me out to the ball game.
Yellow: MAR
Green: WHOPPER
Blue: STARE
Purple: BOX
Yellow group — blemish: DENT, DING, MAR, SCRATCH
Green group — behemoth: COLOSSUS, MAMMOTH, WHALE, WHOPPER
Blue group — rude things to do: POINT, SNICKER, STARE, WHISPER
Purple group — on a baseball field: BASE, BOX, MOUND, PLATE
This puzzle presents a well-balanced challenge that straddles obvious categorizations and subtler groupings. Yellow and green lend themselves to an almost literal interpretation of defects and size.
However, much of the intrigue in the blue group comes from social behaviors that need some concentration, while the purple tests one's baseball terminology proficiency. The grid defines strategic thinking and pattern recognition rather than drifting off into major distractors.
The September 11 puzzle is approachable and engaging. Its blend of serious and funny meanings keeps the solvers alert, while the color-coding of groups provides a structure for systematic solving.
Today's grid is easier than in previous days for those familiar with common word pairings, but it still calls for focus so as not to stumble in small ways. Patterns of literal descriptors, pop culture terms, and sports references continue to form a sturdy backbone of NYT Connections. Solvers can enjoy the quick satisfaction of spotting easy groups and the mental challenge of more subtle connections.