NYT 'Connections' November 9: Clues and Answers for Game #517

Connections requires you to know words across a range of subjects, and today’s puzzle is no exception.

Strategy is the key for when it comes to keeping up your winning streak, so Newsweek asked the AI tool ChatGPT about the best methods for ensuring success.

But first, let’s explain how to play the game.

How To Play Connections

Players are given a table of 16 words. These are split into four groups of four based on common characteristics and placed into categories. The categories vary in difficulty from yellow to green to blue to purple, with yellow considered the easiest category and purple considered the trickiest.

If you’re stuck, try selecting the “Shuffle” button to move the words to a different place on the grid.

Players get four chances to make mistakes before they lose the game.

Connections: The Strategy

When you first start the game, look for familiar groupings, according to ChatGPT.

“Some words might immediately suggest a category. For example, you might see a set of colors, famous people, countries or animals. If something stands out as an obvious category, group those first,” suggested the AI tool.

It also recommended using a process of elimination if you’re stuck, to rule out words you think definitely should not be grouped together.

“Sometimes the categories can be tricky and involve less direct connections, like puns or wordplay. For example, ‘Spring,’ ‘Summer,’ ‘Fall’ and ‘Winter’ could all be grouped as seasons, but that might not be immediately obvious if you’re thinking about other types of connections,” recommended ChatGPT.

Keep scrolling for tips on today’s Connections but be warned: The answers for the puzzle will be revealed at the bottom of the page. So, if you would rather avoid spoilers, we advise you to move down the page with caution.