NYT Connections Delivers Friday, September 19 Puzzle Hints and Answers

Lead: The New York Times today released hints and solutions for its daily Connections puzzle (#831) on Friday, September 19, helping solvers tackle four themed word groups in time for the weekend’s challenge.

Nut Graf: Connections, the Times’ popular word-grouping game, tests players’ ability to sort 16 words into four linked categories. With Friday’s edition often among the toughest, today’s clues and answers offer vital guidance to preserve winning streaks and engage curious word-game enthusiasts.

Hints for Today’s Categories

• To observe
• “I’m a ___ wreck!”
• Can I get you a tissue?
• Something you write on

Today’s Answers

• Evaluate: GRADE, RANK, RATE, SCORE
• Exhibit nervousness: BLUSH, FIDGET, PACE, SWEAT
• Things that can run, annoyingly: DYE, MASCARA, NOSE, STOCKINGS
• **Paper ___:** CLIP, TIGER, TOWEL, TRAIL

Puzzle Context and Gameplay

Connections debuted in June 2023 and has since become a daily staple for word-game aficionados. Each puzzle presents 16 words that must be grouped into four thematic categories, with a maximum of three mistakes allowed before the game ends. Categories are color-coded by difficulty, from easy (yellow) to hard (purple), and the board can be reshuffled to reveal fresh patterns.

Players often share their filled-in grids on social media, celebrating long streaks or rare “reverse rainbows” (solving the hardest group first). With today’s hints and answers in hand, solvers can head into the weekend confident in their Connections prowess-and look forward to a new challenge when the puzzle resets at midnight local time.

Source: Parade (Kenn C. Bivins)