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NYT Connections No. 871 is the puzzle dated Wednesday, October 29, 2025. It asks you to sort 16 words or phrases into four groups of four. Use the graduated clues below before opening the spoiler-marked answer key.
Graduated hints for Connections No. 871
Start with the broadest clues, then move down only if you need more help. These are paraphrased clues, not official New York Times wording.
- Yellow: One group points to resilience, nerve or inner strength.
- Green: One group concerns a means of communicating, carrying something or providing a place for performance.
- Blue: For one group, say each word’s opening sound aloud.
- Purple: One group includes things that feature the alphabet from A through Z.
Spoilers: answers for NYT Connections No. 871
The complete solution, as reported by Forbes, TechRadar and All Things How, is below.
| Color | Category | Words |
|---|---|---|
| Yellow | Fortitude | BACKBONE, COURAGE, HEART, SPIRIT |
| Green | Channel | MEDIUM, OUTLET, PLATFORM, VENUE |
| Blue | Words beginning with the “say” sound | SACRUM, SEITAN, SEYCHELLES, SÉANCE |
| Purple | Things featuring letters A through Z | ABECEDARIUM, COMPUTER KEYBOARD, OUIJA BOARD, SCRABBLE |
Why the groupings are easy to mix up
Spiritualism is a deliberate decoy
SÉANCE, MEDIUM, OUIJA BOARD and SPIRIT all evoke spiritualism, but they are split across three solutions. MEDIUM means a channel, SÉANCE starts with the “say” sound, OUIJA BOARD contains the full alphabet, and SPIRIT fits fortitude.
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BACKBONE and SACRUM are not the anatomy pair
The two terms can suggest the spine, yet BACKBONE is being used figuratively for courage or resolve. SACRUM belongs to the sound-based group instead.
The blue category is phonetic
SACRUM, SEITAN, SEYCHELLES and SÉANCE all begin with a sound like “say.” Their meanings do not form a common category.
The purple category is literal about the alphabet
ABECEDARIUM is an alphabet collection, while a computer keyboard, Ouija board and Scrabble each feature or use the complete A-to-Z set.
How difficult was game #871?
No official New York Times difficulty statistic is established for this puzzle. All Things How rated it 2.5 out of 5, while TechRadar author Johnny Dee labeled it Hard. Those are individual outlet judgments, not NYT measurements, so your experience may differ.
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What to know about the historical puzzle
This guide refers specifically to the archived Wednesday, October 29, 2025 game, not the current day’s Connections board. Connections presents a 16-item grid and requires four correct groups of four; four incorrect submissions end the game. The answer key above comes from corroborating coverage by Forbes, TechRadar and All Things How rather than a directly accessible official NYT page for the historical grid.
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