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Hints for Connections #696
Connections gives players 16 words to sort into four groups of four. The New York Times says each group is color-coded: yellow is the easiest and purple the trickiest. The game is designed so some words may appear to fit more than one category, but each puzzle has one solution. NYT Help Center: Connections
Start with the broad clues, then reveal one example word from each group only if you need a stronger nudge.
- Yellow: Ways to say a broken bone has improved or become whole again.
- Green: Words that can mean “excluding” or “with the exception of.”
- Blue: The four suits in tarot’s minor arcana.
- Purple: Words that sound like gemstones when spoken aloud.
One-word nudges: HEAL, EXCEPT, WANDS, OPEL. The last clue depends on pronunciation, not spelling.
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Full answers for May 7, 2025
Spoilers below. The four categories and their words are:
Yellow: Get better, as a broken bone
- HEAL
- KNIT
- MEND
- RECOVER
KNIT is the less obvious fit: it can describe the way the pieces of a broken bone join together as it heals.
Green: Not including
- BESIDES
- BUT
- EXCEPT
- SAVE
These words can introduce an exception or indicate exclusion in the relevant usage.
Blue: Tarot minor-arcana suits
- CUPS
- PENTACLES
- SWORDS
- WANDS
PENTACLES and WANDS are useful signals for this category; check whether the other tarot suit names are also present.
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Purple: Homophones of gemstones
- CHORAL sounds like CORAL
- OPEL sounds like OPAL
- PURL sounds like PEARL
- QUARTS sounds like QUARTZ
These are sound matches, not alternate spellings of the gemstone names. Reading the entries aloud reveals the connection.
How to approach the trickier groupings
- Check the part of speech and context. The green answers do not all look alike, but each can carry an excluding sense. Test a word in a short phrase rather than relying on its most familiar meaning.
- Look for a category with specialized vocabulary. PENTACLES and WANDS point toward tarot. Once you recognize the topic, verify the other two suits.
- Say suspicious spellings out loud. CHORAL, OPEL, PURL and QUARTS look like ordinary words, but their sounds point to four gemstones.
- Allow figurative meanings. KNIT belongs with bone recovery because it can describe broken pieces joining together.
Playing the daily game or replaying #696
Connections releases daily at midnight in the player’s timezone. The NYT Help Center lists the NYT Games app, the Connections website, NYTimes.com/The Athletic and the News app as places to play. It describes the daily game as free without registration; signing in with an account lets players retain progress across devices. NYT Help Center: Connections
For an older puzzle such as #696, the NYT says its archive includes games back to June 12, 2023 and is available to All Access and Games subscribers. Archive games affect puzzle statistics but do not count toward streaks. Access terms and platform details can change. NYT Help Center: Connections
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