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One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchNeed help with NYT Connections for Tuesday, September 9, 2025? This is game #821. Start with the spoiler-light hints below, then open the answer section only when you’re ready to see all four groups.
Hints for Connections #821
These clues move from broad to more revealing. The category labels and answers are hidden below.
- Ended.
- Have a hard coating of some kind.
- Swallow.
- Not cat, but…
How Connections works
The New York Times Help Center explains: “Players are given 16 words and must find groups of four items that share something in common.” The game uses four color-coded groups, ordered from yellow (easiest) to purple (trickiest). It releases at midnight in the player’s timezone, so a puzzle’s date can appear differently in publications using different time zones.
The New York Times Help Center: Connections
Spoilers: Connections answers for September 9
Warning: the complete categories and word groups are below.
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Yellow: FINISHED
- COMPLETE
- DONE
- OVER
- THROUGH
Each word can mean that something is finished.
Green: THINGS WITH SHELLS
- EGG
- HARD TACO
- M&M
- SNAIL
Each item has a shell or hard outer coating.
Blue: SWIG
- BELT
- GULP
- SHOT
- SLUG
Each can refer to a drink or a way of drinking.
Purple: ___ DOG
- BULL
- LAP
- UNDER
- WATCH
Put DOG after each word to make a common phrase.
Parade and TechRadar independently publish the same four groups for this puzzle. TechRadar writer Johnny Dee called the board easy and reported a perfect score; that is his personal result, not an aggregate difficulty rating.
Parade’s September 9, 2025 Connections guide · TechRadar’s Connections guide
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Can you play this puzzle later?
The New York Times says eligible Games and All Access subscribers can access the Connections archive back to June 12, 2023. September 9, 2025 falls within that stated date range, although the Help Center does not confirm individual boards. Connections is available on the web and in NYT apps, and the Times describes the game as free to play.
Connections access and archive details · NYT Games subscription information
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For another set of puzzles, Simon & Schuster lists Connections: Find the Common Threads in 100+ Puzzles of Wit and Wordplay, a hardcover by The New York Times Games and Wyna Liu. Its publisher listing does not say that it includes game #821.
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Simon & Schuster’s book listing
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