The New York Times continues to captivate puzzle enthusiasts with Connections, its popular daily word-association game that challenges players to uncover hidden relationships between seemingly unrelated words. Puzzle #1098 for June 13, 2026, offers another entertaining mix of categories, ranging from everyday items and timeless music to miniature objects and a particularly tricky wordplay-based Purple group. Some connections can be spotted quickly, while others require players to think beyond the obvious meaning of the words. If today's puzzle has you scratching your head, here are some spoiler-free hints followed by the complete answers.
What is NYT's 'Connections' game?
Connections is a daily puzzle from The New York Times that asks players to organize 16 words into four groups of four. Each group shares a hidden connection, which may involve categories, themes, phrases, meanings, or wordplay. The puzzle uses four color-coded difficulty levels:
- Yellow: Usually the easiest category
- Green: Moderate difficulty
- Blue: Often requires a less obvious connection
- Purple: Typically the most challenging and wordplay-heavy category
Players are allowed only a limited number of mistakes, making careful observation and pattern recognition essential.
NYT Connections hints for today
Yellow: Everything you need for a refined afternoon gathering, except the guests.
Green: These words might remind you of songs that never seem to leave the radio.
Blue: Think small. Much smaller than the real thing.
Purple: Hollywood fans may have an advantage here. Focus on movie titles and a word that sounds like "gory."
NYT Connections answers for June 13, 2026
Here are the correct groupings for today's puzzle:
Yellow – USED IN AFTERNOON TEA: TEACUP, SAUCER, SPOON, TONG
Green – CLASSIC SONG: CLASSIC, HIT, OLDIE, STANDARD
Blue – MINIATURE VERSION OF SOMETHING: MINI, MINIATURE, PUPPET, TOY
Purple – MOVIES WITH TITLES CONTAINING A WORD RHYMING WITH "GORY": CHRISTMAS, MAKEUP, NEVERENDING, WEST SIDE
How to play NYT Connections
The puzzle presents 16 words arranged in a grid, and your goal is to organize them into four groups of four words that share a hidden connection. A new Connections puzzle is released daily through The New York Times Games website and mobile app. Players should start by identifying the most obvious relationships between words. Solving one category often makes the remaining groups easier to spot. Once you identify four words that belong together, select them and submit your answer. Correct groups are automatically locked into place. Because only a limited number of incorrect guesses are allowed, it often helps to solve the easier Yellow and Green categories before tackling the more difficult Blue and Purple groups.
Other NYT games to explore
If you enjoy Connections, The New York Times also offers several other popular daily puzzle games:
- Wordle: Guess a five-letter word in six attempts
- Spelling Bee: Create as many words as possible using a specific set of letters
- The Mini Crossword: A short daily crossword challenge
- Strands: A word-search-inspired puzzle built around hidden themes
Together, these games have become a daily ritual for millions of players looking to test their vocabulary, logic, and pattern-recognition skills every day.
About the Author
The TOI Tech Desk is a dedicated team of journalists committed to delivering the latest and most relevant news from the world of technology to readers of The Times of India. TOI Tech Desk's news coverage spans a wide spectrum across gadget launches, gadget reviews, trends, in-depth analysis, exclusive reports, and breaking stories that impact technology and the digital universe. Be it how-tos or the latest happenings in AI, cybersecurity, personal gadgets, platforms like WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook, and more; TOI Tech Desk brings the news with accuracy and authenticity.
