NYT Connections · #1187
NYT Connections Hints & Answers
Scan every word for smaller words buried inside it before you commit to any group — at least four of these are not what they look like on the surface.
EMBARK appeared in Connections #1108 (Mar 28, 2026) as a word meaning to step onto a vehicle. Today it plays a very different role. INHALE is being reused — it was part of eating voraciously in Connections #1068 (Feb 23, 2026) and plays the same role today.
Today's Puzzle Words & Clues
Which word from today's puzzle confuses you?
| Word | Meaning | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| CABINET | Not furniture — the wooden or plastic enclosure that houses the speaker drivers. | CONE | The funnel-shaped diaphragm that vibrates to push sound into the room. |
| CRUSH | More often a verb for applying force or a romantic feeling — here it means to devour eagerly. | EMBARK | Means to board a vessel — but its final four letters spell BARK, the outer layer of a tree. |
| GROOT | The Marvel tree-creature — fittingly, its last four letters spell ROOT. | GUZZLE | To drink greedily and noisily — the most liquid-focused word of the four. |
| INHALE | Normally about breathing — here it means to eat so fast the food barely touches the plate. | MAGNET | Sits at the back of the driver and creates the magnetic field that moves the cone. |
| MISCREANT | The most formal of the four — a wrongdoer in the most theatrical sense. | NUDIBRANCH | A colourful sea slug — BRANCH hides at the end, making this the hardest to spot. |
| ROGUE | Carries modern connotations of rogue AI and X-Men, but here it's a plain old villain. | RUFFIAN | A rough, violent troublemaker — the street-brawler of the group. |
| SCOUNDREL | A dishonest rascal — Han Solo's favourite self-description. | SNARF | To eat messily and greedily — the most informal and playful of the group. |
| STRUNK | As in Strunk & White, the classic writing style guide co-authored by William Strunk Jr. — his surname ends in TRUNK. | WOOFER | Sounds like a dog — it's actually the large driver built to reproduce low bass frequencies. |
Tricky words to watch
Decoys the NYT plants to throw you off. Tap one to see why it bites.
Decoy GROOT
You're almost certainly picturing the Marvel character — but the puzzle is not about pop culture. Look at the last four letters and think about trees.
Decoy EMBARK
You're probably reading it as 'to begin a journey or board a ship' — but here the puzzle is using it as a container for a tree-related word, not as a travel term.
Decoy WOOFER
You're probably thinking of a dog — that's the bait. Here it's a technical audio component, not an animal.
Decoy CABINET
You're likely picturing a piece of furniture or a government body, but here it refers to the housing that encloses a speaker.
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What are today's Connections answers?
Full spoilers — all four groups revealed.
Yellow group answers
The Yellow Connections group today is OLD TIMEY TROUBLEMAKERS. The yellow group words are MISCREANT, ROGUE, RUFFIAN, SCOUNDREL. MISCREANT, ROGUE, RUFFIAN and SCOUNDREL are all old-fashioned words for a bad person or troublemaker. ROGUE is the sneakiest — its modern pop-culture baggage (X-Men, rogue AI) can make solvers second-guess whether it belongs here.
Green group answers
The Green Connections group today is CONSUME WITH GUSTO. The green group words are CRUSH, GUZZLE, INHALE, SNARF. CRUSH, GUZZLE, INHALE and SNARF all mean to eat or drink with urgent, greedy enthusiasm. INHALE is the most vivid — it implies food disappearing so fast it might as well have been breathed in.
Blue group answers
The Blue Connections group today is PARTS OF A SPEAKER. The blue group words are CABINET, CONE, MAGNET, WOOFER. CABINET, CONE, MAGNET and WOOFER are all physical components of a loudspeaker. The CONE is the paper or plastic diaphragm that actually moves air to produce sound, while the MAGNET drives the whole mechanism.
Purple group answers
The Purple Connections group today is ENDING IN PARTS OF A TREE. The purple group words are EMBARK, GROOT, NUDIBRANCH, STRUNK. EMBARK, GROOT, NUDIBRANCH and STRUNK each end with a part of a tree: BARK, ROOT, BRANCH and TRUNK respectively. NUDIBRANCH is the most obscure — it's a type of sea slug, and almost no one spots BRANCH hiding inside it without a nudge.