Here are progressive hints and the complete answer key for the New York Times Connections puzzle dated Friday, March 21, 2025, game #649. Start with the category clues, then scroll to the spoiler-marked solution if you want the exact groups.
Hints for Connections #649
Try the clues below before revealing the category names or word groups.
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- Yellow: A person’s environment.
- Green: Notable.
- Blue: Building plans.
- Purple: The connecting word rhymes with “car.”
Category answers
Spoilers below. The four categories are MILIEU, LUMINARY, ARCHITECTURAL DRAWING TOOLS, and BAR ___.
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Full solution for March 21, 2025
Spoiler: all 16 answers are listed below.
- MILIEU: CIRCLE, SCENE, SPHERE, WORLD.
- LUMINARY: GREAT, ICON, LEGEND, LION.
- ARCHITECTURAL DRAWING TOOLS: COMPASS, RULER, STENCIL, T-SQUARE.
- BAR ___: CHART, EXAM, MITZVAH, SOAP.
How the groups connect
MILIEU: settings and surroundings
A milieu is someone’s environment or social setting. CIRCLE, SCENE, SPHERE, and WORLD can each describe a surrounding context.
#1 Best Overall
LUMINARY: a notable person
A luminary is a prominent person. GREAT, ICON, LEGEND, and LION can all point to someone notable, though the connection is expressed in different ways.
Architectural drawing tools
COMPASS, RULER, STENCIL, and T-SQUARE are implements used to make or guide technical drawings.
Rank #2
BAR ___: familiar phrases
Put “bar” before each word to form BAR CHART, BAR EXAM, BAR MITZVAH, and BAR SOAP.
How difficult was this board?
Yahoo’s March 20, 2025 syndicated guide reported that Connections Companion rated this puzzle 3.3 out of 5. That is the Companion’s rating as reported by Yahoo, not an official New York Times score.
Rank #3
Why some guides appeared on March 20
This answer key is for Friday, March 21, 2025, puzzle #649. Connections resets at midnight in each time zone, so a guide published on March 20 could already be covering the next day’s board.
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