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NYT Connections · #1191

NYT Connections Hints & Answers (#1191) — September 14, 2026

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Earlier Sep 13 This puzzle Sep 14 Later Sep 15

“When a word feels like it belongs in two places, test it as a word part — some of these words are hiding a job that has nothing to do with their obvious meaning.”

NYT Connections hints for September 14, 2026

Three levels of help — a definition for every word, colour-coded group nudges, and a heads-up on the traps. Skip to all answers →

1

Word clues

A spoiler-free definition for every word in the grid. Tap the eye on any card to reveal which colour-group it belongs to.

1 BAGThe thin plastic carrier charged for at supermarkets — now banned or taxed in many countries.
2 BLUEBLUEGRASS — the Appalachian music style and the Kentucky state grass; the colour meaning is the decoy.
3 CANARYSlang for someone who 'sings' — tells secrets to the police. The bird meaning is the bait.
4 COOTA dark waterbird with a white bill — also slang for a foolish old person, which is the trap.
5 CRABCRABGRASS — the stubborn lawn weed that spreads sideways like a crab.
6 CUTLERYPlastic forks, knives and spoons handed out with takeaway meals.
7 GOOSEThe large honking bird; straightforward here with no hidden twist.
8 LEMONLEMONGRASS — the fragrant herb used in Thai and Vietnamese cooking.
9 LOONA diving bird famous for its eerie, haunting call on northern lakes.
10 RATTo rat someone out is to betray them; as a noun, a rat is the person who does it.
11 SNITCHPlayground and street slang for a tattletale or police informant.
12 STIRRERThe slim plastic stick used to mix a hot drink — a coffee-counter staple now being phased out.
13 STOOLIEShort for stool pigeon — a criminal who informs on others to cut a deal.
14 STRAWThe plastic drinking tube — farm straw is the bait; this is the café kind.
15 TEALLooks like a colour; it's actually a small dabbling duck — the colour is named after the bird.
16 WHEATWHEATGRASS — the dense green shoots juiced in health drinks.
2

Group hints

Four colour-coded groups, easiest → hardest. Every button reveals the hint, the category name, or a single word — tap only what you need.

See Hint You might spot these on a lake or a pond.
See Group WATERBIRDS
See WordCOOT
See WordGOOSE
See WordLOON
See WordTEAL
See Hint The kind of person whose friends stop trusting them very quickly.
See Group INFORMANT
See WordCANARY
See WordRAT
See WordSNITCH
See WordSTOOLIE
See Hint Items that campaigners want banned at the checkout and the café.
See Group COMMON SINGLE-USE PLASTIC ITEMS
See WordBAG
See WordCUTLERY
See WordSTIRRER
See WordSTRAW
See Hint Each one grows into a longer word when the lawn arrives.
See Group ___GRASS
See WordBLUE
See WordCRAB
See WordLEMON
See WordWHEAT
3

Words the puzzle wants you to mis-group

Read these before you guess — they're the words most likely to break a streak. Tap for the trap.

1 CANARY Tap to see why this word traps.
You're probably thinking of the small yellow bird — and it is a bird, which makes the waterbird group feel right. But here it's slang for someone who talks to the authorities, not a feathered creature.
2 TEAL Tap to see why this word traps.
You're probably reading it as a blue-green colour, maybe even pairing it with BLUE. But here it's a waterbird — a type of dabbling duck — not a shade on a paint chart.
3 BLUE Tap to see why this word traps.
You're probably thinking of the colour or a mood — but the puzzle is using it as a prefix that attaches to another word entirely, not as a standalone descriptor.
4 STRAW Tap to see why this word traps.
You're probably picturing dried farm stalks — but the puzzle wants the thin plastic tube you drink through, nothing agricultural about it.

NYT Connections answers for September 14, 2026

All four groups revealed, easiest first. Each card holds the theme, the four words, and why the group works.

Y WATERBIRDS · Yellow · easiest
  • COOT
  • GOOSE
  • LOON
  • TEAL

COOT, GOOSE, LOON and TEAL are all waterbirds. TEAL is the sneakiest — most solvers see a colour first and only later remember it's a duck.

G INFORMANT · Green · easy
  • CANARY
  • RAT
  • SNITCH
  • STOOLIE

CANARY, RAT, SNITCH and STOOLIE are all slang words for an informant. CANARY is the most deceptive — it's also a bird, so solvers naturally try to park it with the waterbirds, making it the last word many lock in here.

B COMMON SINGLE-USE PLASTIC ITEMS · Blue · medium
  • BAG
  • CUTLERY
  • STIRRER
  • STRAW

BAG, CUTLERY, STIRRER and STRAW are all common single-use plastic items targeted by environmental legislation. STRAW is the trickiest — its farm meaning (dried grain stalks) pulls solvers away from the plastic drinking tube.

P ___GRASS · Purple · hardest
  • BLUE
  • CRAB
  • LEMON
  • WHEAT

BLUE, CRAB, LEMON and WHEAT all precede GRASS to form compound words: bluegrass, crabgrass, lemongrass and wheatgrass. BLUE is the hardest — solvers are busy reading it as a colour or a mood and rarely think to attach it to a plant.

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