The New York Times Connections Puzzle Insights for March 20, 2025
If you’re here for the latest Connections solution for Thursday, March 20, 2025, you’re in the right place. This post will provide hints, advice, tactics, and eventually reveal the answers for all four categories. Additionally, we’ll delve into the meanings of the more challenging words along the way. Warning: Spoilers follow for NYT Connections #648! Continue reading if you want some assistance (and then the answers) for today’s game.
Daily Connections Hints
For a convenient way to revisit our daily hints, consider bookmarking this link. This page also contains previous hints in case you’re interested in puzzles you may have missed.
Below are some subtle hints regarding today’s Connections answers. Scroll at a leisurely pace and take just the clues you need!
Category Hints for Today’s Puzzle
Here are some hints for grouping in today’s Connections that won’t reveal answers:
- Yellow category: Someone who expresses their emotions openly.
- Green category: These exist where land meets water.
- Blue category: Related to terms akin to “string” or “cable.”
- Purple category: Items that can be contained in small glass vessels.
Attention: Spoilers Below!
The upcoming section will disclose some answers. Proceed with caution if you wish to avoid complete spoilers. (The full solution will be provided further down.)
Important Notes on the More Challenging Parts
The term SOUND does not align with LOUD and VOCAL; think of it in terms like “the Long Island SOUND.”
Identifying the word that usually follows UMBILICAL is key to deciphering the rest in that category (however, VOCAL is not included).
GENIE is featured in a famous song lyric by Christina Aguilera, which may aid in uncovering the other words in that group—not because they are linked through lyrics, but because they can fit within the same phrase from the chorus.
What are the Categories for Today’s Connections?
- Yellow: OUTSPOKEN
- Green: BODIES OF WATER
- Blue: KINDS OF CORDS
- Purple: THINGS IN BOTTLES
Further Warning: The Answers Are Below
Ready to uncover the answers to today’s Connections challenge? They are all revealed here.
What Are the Yellow Words in Today’s Connections?
The yellow group is identified as the easiest category. The theme is OUTSPOKEN, with the words: DIRECT, FRANK, LOUD, VOCAL.
What Are the Green Words in Today’s Connections?
The green group is classified as the second-easiest. The theme for this category is BODIES OF WATER, consisting of: BAY, CHANNEL, SOUND, STRAIT.
What Are the Blue Words in Today’s Connections?
The blue group is considered the second-hardest. This category’s theme is KINDS OF CORDS, including: BUNGEE, EXTENSION, SPINAL, UMBILICAL.
What Are the Purple Words in Today’s Connections?
The purple category is regarded as the most challenging. The theme here refers to THINGS IN BOTTLES, comprising: GENIE, LIGHTNING, MESSAGE, SHIP.
Unraveling Today’s Connections
STRAIT, SOUND, CHANNEL, and BAY are all associated with bodies of water. That’s a starting point! 🟩
UMBILICAL triggers thoughts of an UMBILICAL cord. That naturally aligns with VOCAL, BUNGEE, and EXTENSION. Ah, just a misstep! SPINAL must be the last word for this group.
SHIP, GENIE, LIGHTNING, and MESSAGE could plausibly be things contained in bottles. 🟪
Connections Puzzle #648 🟩🟩🟩🟩 🟦🟨🟦🟦 🟪🟪🟪🟪 🟨🟨🟨🟨 🟦🟦🟦🟦
How to Engage with Connections
A comprehensive guide for playing Connections exists, but here’s a brief recap of the game rules:
You can find the Connections game either on the New York Times site or in their Games app (previously known as the Crossword app). You’ll see a grid with 16 tiles, each containing a word or phrase. Your objective is to pick four tiles that share a common theme. Usually, these are all items of the same type (for instance, RAIN, SLEET, HAIL, and SNOW are various forms of precipitation), but sometimes a play on words is involved (like BUCKET, GUEST, TOP TEN, and WISH being different types of lists: bucket list, guest list, and more).
Choose four items and click the Submit button. If correct, the category and color will appear. (Yellow is the simplest, followed by green, blue, and finally purple.) Should your guess be wrong, another attempt will be granted.
The game concludes when you’ve successfully identified all four groups. However, if you make four errors before completion, the game ends and the answers will be displayed.
Winning Strategies for Connections
To excel in Connections, understanding the groupings’ complex nature is essential. Anticipate overlaps within groupings. For example, a previous puzzle included six breakfast items—BACON, EGG, PANCAKE, OMELET, WAFFLE, and CEREAL—but BACON was cleverly grouped with artists like CLOSE, MUNCH, and WHISTLER, while EGG was part of a list of items usually sold by the dozen (JUROR, ROSE, MONTH). Thus, ensure you verify that your selected four exclusively belong together before hitting “submit.”
If you find yourself stuck, consider focusing on words that seem unrelated to the others. For instance, if WHISTLER reminds you solely of the famous painting “Whistler’s Mother,” you might be onto something worthwhile. Exploration often helps; in one case, searching for a connection to the painter named Close became necessary, as they didn’t appear to fit any obvious categories.
When in doubt, seeking helpful hints can also be beneficial—one reason these tips are shared daily. Be sure to check back tomorrow for the next puzzle!
