NYT Connections #555 was the puzzle published on Tuesday, December 17, 2024. Its groups are courage-related words, road terms, kinds of paper, and tennis-court surfaces. Use the progressive hints first, then open the spoiler section for the full answer.
NYT Connections #555: Hints for December 17, 2024
Need help with Connections #555? The Tuesday, December 17, 2024, puzzle groups its 16 words into courage-related terms, roads, types of paper, and tennis-court surfaces.
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Try the hints below before jumping to the complete solution. The answer section reveals every category and word assignment.
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Show the first hint
One group describes courage, determination, or boldness.
Hint 2
Show the second hint
One group consists of words that can describe roads or thoroughfares.
Hint 3
Show the third hint
Think of different materials used to make paper products.
Hint 4
Show the final hint
The last group consists of tennis-court surfaces.
Connections #555 answers for December 17
Spoiler warning: The complete categories and all 16 answers are below.
Rank #2
| Color | Category | Answers |
|---|---|---|
| Yellow | INTREPIDITY | GRIT, HEART, NERVE, PLUCK |
| Green | ROAD | ARTERY, AVENUE, DRAG, DRIVE |
| Blue | KINDS OF PAPER | CONSTRUCTION, GRAPH, TISSUE, WAX |
| Purple | KINDS OF TENNIS COURTS | CARPET, CLAY, GRASS, HARD |
Yellow: Words describing courage or determination
GRIT, HEART, NERVE, PLUCK
Each word can describe courage, resolve, or spirited determination. Someone with grit persists through difficulty; someone with heart shows courage; nerve can mean boldness; and pluck describes spirited bravery.
Green: Road
ARTERY, AVENUE, DRAG, DRIVE
These words can refer to roads, routes, or thoroughfares. An artery can be a major route through a city, while avenue is a familiar road term. Drag and drive can also appear as road terms or in road names.
Blue: Kinds of paper
CONSTRUCTION, GRAPH, TISSUE, WAX
Add the word “paper” after each entry: construction paper, graph paper, tissue paper, and wax paper.
Purple: Kinds of tennis courts
CARPET, CLAY, GRASS, HARD
These are tennis-court surfaces. Clay and grass are especially recognizable from professional tennis, while hard courts are common at many recreational and tournament venues. Carpet is the trap: it sounds more like a household flooring material, but carpet is also a recognized tennis-court surface category.
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Why Connections #555 was difficult
The puzzle places several tempting words near one another conceptually without allowing them to form a group. ARTERY, NERVE, and HEART all look like body-related terms. Only HEART belongs in the courage group; NERVE also means courage, while ARTERY belongs with road terms.
CLAY and WAX can both suggest physical materials, but they split into different categories. WAX forms “wax paper,” whereas CLAY is a tennis-court surface. The unusual CARPET entry makes the purple group harder to recognize until the other three surface types become apparent.
The cleanest solving path is to look for the obvious compound phrases first: construction paper, graph paper, tissue paper, and wax paper. From there, the tennis surfaces leave a useful set of four, and the remaining words separate into road terms and courage-related words.
The full December 17 Connections board
The 16 entries in puzzle #555 were:
TISSUE, CARPET, WAX, PLUCK, DRAG, NERVE, CLAY, GRAPH, GRASS, ARTERY, HARD, HEART, DRIVE, GRIT, CONSTRUCTION, AVENUE.
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For readers who prefer solving away from a screen, the official NYT Connections puzzle book from The New York Times Games and Wyna Liu collects Connections-style category-matching puzzles in physical book form. Check the current retailer listing for availability and product details; this recommendation does not imply that puzzle #555 appears in the book.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What is NYT Connections?
Connections is a New York Times Games word-association puzzle. Players receive 16 words and must sort them into four groups of four, with each group linked by a common relationship. The game is available through the New York Times Games website and app, subject to the service’s current access and account requirements.
Best Value
- Find hundreds of words in an easy to read format - Some words you'll spot easily, but you'll have to search hard for others.
- A wide range of puzzle topics, including movies, actors, sports, cars, and more!
- Variations on the standard word search puzzles are included for extra challenge.
- Answer key in the back of the book.
- Spiral bound, 192 pages.
Date clarification
This guide is for Connections #555, published Tuesday, December 17, 2024. “December 17” here does not refer to a 2025 puzzle. The puzzle number and date are identified consistently as #555 and December 17, 2024 in published answer guides.
Frequently Asked Questions
What date was NYT Connections #555?
NYT Connections #555 was published on Tuesday, December 17, 2024. It is not the December 17, 2025 puzzle.
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What were the traps in Connections #555?
The most misleading entries are ARTERY, NERVE, HEART, CLAY, WAX, and CARPET. ARTERY is a road term, NERVE and HEART describe courage, WAX forms “wax paper,” and CLAY and CARPET are tennis-court surfaces.
What were the Connections #555 categories?
The four categories were INTREPIDITY, ROAD, KINDS OF PAPER, and KINDS OF TENNIS COURTS.
The Bottom Line
Connections #555 answers: INTREPIDITY — GRIT, HEART, NERVE, PLUCK; ROAD — ARTERY, AVENUE, DRAG, DRIVE; KINDS OF PAPER — CONSTRUCTION, GRAPH, TISSUE, WAX; KINDS OF TENNIS COURTS — CARPET, CLAY, GRASS, HARD.
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