Today's NYT Connections clues and answers, September 18, #465

Looking for more hookup answers? Click here for daily connection tipsWe also provide daily answers and clues for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzle.

Need answers to the New York Times Connections puzzle? To me, Wordle is a vocabulary test, while Connections is a brain teaser. You're given 16 words and asked to sort them into four groups that have some kind of connection. Some words are obvious, but our games editor Wyna Liu knows how to trick you with words that fit into multiple groups. Read below for today's Connections hints and answers.

There's also news in the world of Connections: the Times now has a Connections Bot, similar to the one they had earlier for Wordle. When you visit it after playing, you get a numerical score and the program analyzes your answers. Players who are registered in the Times Games section can also track their progress, including the number of puzzles completed, win percentage, number of times they got a perfect score, and winning streaks, for that geeky feeling.

read more: NYT Connections could be the new Wordle: Tips and tricks

How to play Connection

Easy to play, hard to win. Look at 16 words and mentally assign them to four related groups. Click on four words that you think go together. The groups are color coded, but you won't know what goes where until you see the answer. Yellow groups are the easiest, then green, blue, and purple are the hardest. Look carefully at the words and think about related terms. Sometimes the connections have to do with parts of words. Once, four words were grouped together because they each started with the name of a rock band. These include “Rushmore” and “Journeyman.”

read more: The Connection Bot will give you a numerical score every day.

Today's Connection Group Tip

Here are four grouping tips for today's Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest, the yellow group, to the more difficult (and sometimes weird), the purple group.

Yellow group tips: Would you like to come?

Green Group Tips: Interesting info.

Blue Group Tips: Another “real thing”.

Purple Group Tips: Scooby.

Answers to Today's Connection Group

Yellow Group: Meeting place outside the house.

Green Group: Lowered.

Blue Group: Types of reels.

Purple Group: Cartoon dog minus the “Y”.

read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: What are the most common letters in English words?

What's the answer for Connections today?

Today's Connections in yellow letters

The theme is outdoor gathering spaces outside the home, and there are four answers: decks, porches, entryways and gardens.

Today's Connection Green Words

The theme is the lowdown, and the four answers are Dish, Dope, Info, and Scoop.

Today's Connection in blue

The topic was “Types of reels.” The answer was four: bloopers, demos, highlights, and sizzles.

Today's Connection Purple Words

The theme is cartoon dogs without the letter “Y.” The four answers are droop, goof, lad, and snoop.