For players struggling to identify patterns or those looking for confirmation, today’s puzzle presented a balanced mix of straightforward and moderately tricky categories, testing both vocabulary and lateral thinking.
What is NYT Connections?
Connections is a daily word association game featured in The New York Times’ Games section. Developed with the involvement of associate puzzle editor Wyna Liu, the game challenges players to find common threads among a set of 16 words.
The objective is simple in theory: group the 16 words into four sets of four, where each set shares a specific connection. In practice, however, the challenge lies in identifying the correct connections, as several words may appear to fit together but only one grouping is accurate.
The game can be played on web browsers and mobile devices and has quickly gained traction on social media platforms, where players share their results in a colour-coded grid format.
How the Connections game works
Each Connections puzzle consists of four categories, arranged by difficulty. Players must select four words they believe belong together and submit their choice. If correct, the group disappears from the board and is labelled with its category.
Incorrect selections count as mistakes, and players are allowed up to four errors before the game ends. To assist with pattern recognition, players can shuffle and rearrange the grid freely.The four categories are colour-coded by difficulty:
- Yellow (easiest)
- Green
- Blue
- Purple (most challenging)
Like Wordle, Connections refreshes daily at midnight local time.
NYT Connections hints today: December 14 categories teased
For players who prefer hints over outright solutions, subtle clues were offered for each category without naming them directly, as mentioned in a report by Mashable.
- Yellow: Aquatic creatures
- Green: Traditional auction phrasing
- Blue: Money used around the world
- Purple: Words that commonly precede “cup”
These hints were designed to nudge players toward the correct groupings while preserving the puzzle’s challenge.
Today’s Connections categories explained
For those needing additional assistance, the full category labels for Sunday’s puzzle were as follows:
- Yellow: Fish
- Green: Words in an auction-ending phrase
- Blue: Global currencies
- Purple: Words before “cup”
Each category required players to recognise contextual usage rather than relying solely on direct definitions.
NYT Connections Answers for December 14, 2024
After navigating the clues and categories, the solutions to Connections #552 were revealed as follows:
Fish:
FLUKE, MULLET, SOLE, TANG
Words in an auction-ending phrase:
GOING, ONCE, SOLD, TWICE
Global currencies:
POUND, REAL, SOL, YUAN
Words before “cup”:
BUTTER, DIVA, SOLO, WORLD
Together, these groupings completed the puzzle and cleared the board successfully.
Players who did not manage to crack today’s puzzle need not be discouraged. A new set of words will appear at midnight, offering another opportunity to test logical reasoning and vocabulary skills. Regular play often improves pattern recognition, making future puzzles easier to approach.
FAQs
What are the NYT Connections Answers for December 14, 2024?
The NYT Connections Answers include categories such as Fish, Auction Phrases, Global Currencies and Words Before “Cup.”
How many mistakes are allowed in Connections?
Players can make up to four incorrect guesses before the game ends.