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These are the hints and answers for NYT Connections puzzle #547, published Monday, December 9, 2024. If you meant the separate puzzle published on December 9, 2025, this is not its answer key. Start with the spoiler-free hints below, or jump to the full reveal when you’re ready.
Progressive hints for Connections #547
Try each clue in order before revealing the category names or answers.
- Think of taking time to mull something over or carefully consider an idea.
- Look for objects or methods that can help start a fire.
- Think of a school biology lab and materials used to examine a sample.
- Look for words that can follow a single letter.
Category hints
- Yellow: Careful thought or consideration.
- Green: Things used to start a fire.
- Blue: Things used to view a biological sample.
- Purple: Words that follow “X.”
Full answer key
Spoilers below: The four groups and all 16 tiles are revealed here.
| Color | Category | Words |
|---|---|---|
| Yellow | Deliberation | CONSIDERATION, REFLECTION, SCRUTINY, THOUGHT |
| Green | Used in starting a fire | FLINT, LIGHTER, MAGNIFYING GLASS, MATCHES |
| Blue | Used to view a biological sample | MICROSCOPE, SLIDE, SPECIMEN, STAIN |
| Purple | Words after “X” | FACTOR, FILES, GAMES, RAY |
Why the tricky groups fit
Fire-starting includes a method
FLINT can provide sparks, while a LIGHTER and MATCHES provide ignition. A MAGNIFYING GLASS can focus sunlight to produce heat under suitable conditions. The category covers things used to start a fire, not only objects that make a flame directly.
#1 Best Overall
The biology group includes preparation
A MICROSCOPE magnifies, a SLIDE holds prepared material, and a SPECIMEN is the sample. A STAIN can improve contrast or make structures easier to see, so it belongs as a preparation aid rather than an optical device.
The purple group completes familiar phrases
Place X before each word to get X-factor, The X-Files, X Games, and X-ray. The connection becomes clear in the completed phrases, not from the four words on their own.
Rank #2
Watch for plausible overlaps
SCRUTINY can suggest close examination, which may pull it toward the sample group, while MAGNIFYING GLASS may suggest viewing. Their intended groups are deliberation and fire-starting, respectively. Before submitting a set, check that all 16 tiles still divide cleanly into four groups.
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