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1Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteNYT Connections #305 is the puzzle published Thursday, April 11, 2024. Its 16 words sort into haircuts ending in “cut,” measuring instruments, water and gas conduits, and fast-food mascots. Hints come first below; the complete groups and answers follow.
Hints for Connections #305
Try these clues before looking at the category names:
- Coiffures.
- Things used to quantify or indicate something.
- These might carry water or gas, but they are not especially useful for transporting solids.
- Emblems associated with restaurant chains.
The 16 words
BOWL, BUZZ, CHANNEL, CLOWN, COLONEL, COMPASS, CREW, KING, LINE, MAIN, MERMAID, PIPE, PIXIE, RULER, SCALE, WATCH
Connections #305 answers
| Category | Words | Why they fit |
|---|---|---|
| Haircuts with “cut” | BOWL, BUZZ, CREW, PIXIE | Each word precedes “cut” in a haircut name: bowl cut, buzz cut, crew cut, and pixie cut. |
| Measuring instruments | COMPASS, RULER, SCALE, WATCH | A compass indicates direction; a ruler measures length; a scale measures weight or mass, depending on its type; and a watch indicates or measures time. |
| Water and gas conduits | CHANNEL, LINE, MAIN, PIPE | Each can describe a route or conduit carrying water or gas. |
| Fast-food mascots | CLOWN, COLONEL, KING, MERMAID | These point to Ronald McDonald, Colonel Sanders, the Burger King mascot, and Starbucks’ siren figure, respectively. “Mermaid” is the puzzle’s wording; Starbucks describes its figure as a siren. |
Why some groups are trickier
The haircut set has a clean wordplay test: add “cut” after each tile. The measurement group is broader, since its members cover different kinds of measurement or indication rather than one shared unit.
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CHANNEL and LINE can suggest communication or other infrastructure, so the conduit category is easier to miss until you consider water and gas uses. The mascot set depends on recognizing the brands, and MERMAID is the least literal fit because Starbucks calls its figure a siren.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Which April 11 puzzle is this?
This answer is for Connections puzzle #305, published April 11, 2024—not a puzzle from a later year that happens to fall on April 11. The original word list and answer groups were recorded in Kris Holt’s Forbes guide published April 10, 2024; a September 2026 retrospective also discusses the groupings and the siren/mermaid distinction.
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