Seeking the solutions for the Connections puzzle dated March 18, 2025? You’re in the right place! This post will provide hints, techniques, and eventually, the answers to all four categories. In addition, I’ll clarify the meanings of the more challenging words so that everything clicks into place. Warning: spoilers for March 18’s NYT Connections #646 lie ahead! If you’re after some guidance (and the final answers) for today’s game, keep reading.

For effortless daily access to our Connections hints, don’t forget to bookmark this page. You can also locate hints for previous puzzles, in case you’re curious about past challenges.

This section will provide subtle hints related to today’s Connections answers. As you navigate down the page, the themes and solutions will be unveiled. Take your time and grab just the clues you need!

Credit: Connections/NYT

Suggestions for Today’s Connections Themes

Here are some hints without revealing the answers for today’s groupings:

• Yellow category – Exceptional and unmatched.

• Green category – Bless you!

• Blue category – Did you spot one or more? It’s hard to say.

• Purple category – Based on the spelling, I know you encountered several of these.

Caution: Spoilers Ahead!

Answers are about to be disclosed. Proceed slowly if you wish to avoid spoilers. (A complete solution follows lower on the page.)

Navigating the Challenging Sections

The term DIE can represent the singular of DICE, but in this context, it refers to “the” as in Die Fledermaus.

Considering the context of DIE versus DICE, are there additional words that change their spelling based on plurality?

SINGULAR signifies “distinct from all others.”

In Connections, categories typically stand apart from one another; nevertheless, today’s blue and purple groupings exhibit a close relationship.

Categories in Today’s Connections

• Yellow: EXCEPTIONAL

• Green: GERMAN TERMS

• Blue: PLURAL ANIMALS WITH IDENTICAL SINGULAR FORMS

• Purple: PLURAL TERMS THAT VARY GREATLY FROM THEIR SINGULAR FORMS

DOUBLE CAUTION: SOLUTIONS LIE BELOW

Eager to discover the answers to today’s Connections puzzle? They are revealed below.

Yellow Words in Today’s Connections

The yellow category is generally the most intuitive. The theme for this group is EXCEPTIONAL, which includes the words: REMARKABLE, SINGULAR, SPECIAL, UNIQUE.

Green Words in Today’s Connections

The green category is recognized as the second least difficult. This group centers on GERMAN TERMS, comprising: ANGST, DIE, KINDER, WURST.

Blue Words in Today’s Connections

The blue category is regarded as the next hardest. Its theme involves PLURAL ANIMALS WITH IDENTICAL SINGULAR FORMS, featuring: DEER, SHEEP, SHRIMP, SQUID.

Purple Words in Today’s Connections

The purple group is the most challenging. This category addresses PLURAL TERMS THAT DRASTICALLY DIFFER IN SINGULAR FORM and the words are: DICE, LICE, MICE, OXEN.

Solving Today’s Connections

Initial impressions revealed several animals, some of which can exist in both singular and plural forms (DEER, SHEEP, SHRIMP, SQUID), while others are solely plural (MICE, OXEN). That seemed a good starting point. 🟦 Success!

On closer inspection, SPECIAL, UNIQUE, SINGULAR, and REMARKABLE appeared to be straightforward. 🟨

KINDER was initially thought of as “more kind,” but it aligns with the German language context (think “KINDERgarten”), as it pairs well with WURST, ANGST, and DIE, which are also German words. 🟩

This leaves MICE, OXEN, LICE, and DICE. These terms reflect words with irregular plural forms—mouse transforms into MICE, ox becomes OXEN, louse to LICE, and die to DICE. 🟪 Perfect.

Connections
Puzzle #646
🟦🟦🟦🟦
🟨🟨🟨🟨
🟩🟩🟩🟩
🟪🟪🟪🟪

Playing Connections: A Quick Guide

A comprehensive Connections gameplay guide is available, but here’s a brief overview of the rules:

To start, locate the Connections game on the New York Times website or within their Games app (formerly known as the Crossword app). You’ll encounter a board featuring 16 tiles, each containing a word or phrase. Your objective is to identify a set of four tiles that share a commonality. Often, they’re all types of the same thing (for instance: RAIN, SLEET, HAIL, and SNOW are all categories of inclement weather), but sometimes wordplay is involved (for example, BUCKET, GUEST, TOP TEN, and WISH can convert into lists: bucket list, guest list, etc.).

Select four items and click the Submit button. If the selection is accurate, the category and corresponding color will be shown (Yellow being the simplest, followed by green, then blue, and lastly purple). Should your guess be incorrect, you’ll be offered a chance to try again.

Victory is achieved once all four groups are correctly identified. However, if you reach four incorrect guesses beforehand, the game concludes, and the answers will be displayed.

Strategies for Winning Connections

To excel in Connections, remember that the groupings are crafted to be intricate. Anticipate overlapping categories. For example, one puzzle previously featured breakfast foods: BACON, EGG, PANCAKE, OMELET, WAFFLE, and CEREAL. Yet, BACON was found in a collection of painters alongside CLOSE, MUNCH, and WHISTLER, while EGG belonged to a collection of items available by the dozen (along with JUROR, ROSE, and MONTH). Hence, hold off on clicking “submit” until you’re certain that your quartet contains only those four elements.

If you find yourself stuck, a helpful tactic is to examine words that appear unrelated to the others. If WHISTLER brings to mind the artwork titled “Whistler’s Mother,” you may be onto something worthwhile. In one case, confusion over the name Close led to a successful search for a painter sharing that surname, revealing a possible connection.

Ultimately, when facing difficulty, seeking helpful hints becomes invaluable—which is precisely why daily insights are provided. Check back tomorrow for another puzzle!