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For Thursday, August 22, 2024, the New York Times Connections puzzle is game #438. Start with the spoiler-light hints below; the category names and complete groups follow afterward. Connections asks you to sort 16 words into four groups of four, with up to four mistakes allowed.
Spoiler-light hints for Connections #438
These clues point toward each group without giving away the 16-word sort:
- Yellow: Cinema stars
- Green: Vertically ascending areas of a building
- Blue: Read all about it
- Purple: Words for a mischievous trick
If one category still feels vague, think about equipment in a classic movie theater, different words for a building level, names that have appeared on newspapers, and verbs associated with pranks.
Connections #438 categories
Yellow: Classic movie theater equipment
This group describes familiar theater hardware rather than film genres or people.
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Green: TIER
Each answer can mean a horizontal level in a building. The trap is STORY: in US English it can mean a building level, while UK English generally uses storey for that sense.
Blue: Newspaper names
These are words used in the names of newspapers, not clues about reading or astronomy.
Purple: Prank verbs
The entries become prank actions when used as verbs or in common prank expressions. The group includes egging, mooning, streaking and toilet-papering.
Full answers for August 22
| Group | Category | Words |
|---|---|---|
| Yellow | Classic movie theater equipment | PROJECTOR, REEL, SCREEN, SPEAKER |
| Green | TIER | DECK, FLOOR, LEVEL, STORY |
| Blue | Newspaper names | GLOBE, MIRROR, POST, SUN |
| Purple | Prank verbs | EGG, MOON, STREAK, TOILET PAPER |
Why STORY is the key trap
Most solvers first read STORY as a narrative, which makes it look like it belongs with words such as article or tale. In this puzzle, it uses the US sense of a building level: a first-story or upper-story room. That places it with DECK, FLOOR and LEVEL under TIER. Solvers accustomed to UK English may expect storey, making the intended connection less immediate.
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How the purple group works
The final set is built from actions commonly associated with mischievous pranks: to egg a house, moon someone, streak, or cover a property with toilet paper. The words do not form a conventional noun category, so recognizing the verb phrases is more useful than looking for a shared object.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How to play Connections
Connections is available through the New York Times Games site on desktop and mobile. Select four words that share a connection and submit them as a group. You can make up to four mistakes, so use the yellow and green clues to secure more literal links before attempting the deliberately looser purple category.
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