Connections Hints
Wednesday, September 20, 2023
Words from the NYT Connections puzzle — September 20, 2023
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Show the word gridAll 16 words — you figure out the groups
Show the themesCategory names only, no words revealed
One word per groupTheme name + one word per category
Full solutionAll words and explanations
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Word grid
All 16 words, sorted alphabetically. Group them into four categories of four.
ALLEY
ATE
BACKUP
BALL
COPY
EXTRA
FOR
LANE
MUG
PEN
PIN
SPARE
TEE
TOO
TOTE
WON
Themes
The four category names, easiest to hardest. No words revealed yet.
REPLACEMENTStraightforward
BOWLINGModerate
COMMON SWAG ITEMSTricky
NUMBER HOMOPHONESDevious
One word per group
Theme name plus one word from each category.
REPLACEMENTStraightforward
WORDS MEANING A STAND-IN OR SUBSTITUTE+ 3 more…
BOWLINGModerate
THINGS YOU'D FIND AT A BOWLING ALLEY+ 3 more…
COMMON SWAG ITEMSTricky
FREEBIES YOU MIGHT GET AT A CONFERENCE OR TRADE SHOW+ 3 more…
NUMBER HOMOPHONESDevious
WORDS THAT SOUND LIKE NUMBERS WHEN SPOKEN ALOUD+ 3 more…
Full solution
REPLACEMENTStraightforward
BACKUP,COPY,EXTRA,SPARE
BACKUP, COPY, EXTRA, and SPARE all mean a replacement or substitute for something else
BOWLINGModerate
ALLEY,BALL,LANE,PIN
ALLEY, BALL, LANE, and PIN are all associated with the sport of bowling
COMMON SWAG ITEMSTricky
MUG,PEN,TEE,TOTE
MUG, PEN, TEE (t-shirt), and TOTE are all common promotional giveaway or swag items
NUMBER HOMOPHONESDevious
ATE,FOR,TOO,WON
ATE sounds like 8, FOR sounds like 4, TOO sounds like 2, and WON sounds like 1 — all homophones of numbers