If you’re looking for the Connections answer for Friday, July 5, 2024, read on: I’ll share some pointers, tips, and strategies, and finally the solutions for all four categories. Along the way, I’ll explain the meanings of the trickier words and we’ll learn how it all fits together. Warning, below are spoilers for NYT Connections #390, July 5! Read on if you want some hints (and then the answer) for today’s Connections game.
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Below I’ll give you some indirect hints about today’s Connections answers. And further down the page I’ll reveal the themes and the answers. Scroll slowly and take only the hints you need!
Source: Connections/NYT
Tips for the themes in today’s Connections puzzle
Here are some spoiler-free tips for the groupings in today’s Connections:
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Yellow Category – A deep feeling of longing for something.
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Green category – You can buy these publications at the supermarket checkout, for example.
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Blue Category – Iconic figures in a British spy series.
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Purple category – Subgenres of a sparkling, informal music style that is often played on the radio.
WARNING: The following contains spoilers for today’s Connections puzzle!
We’re going to give away some answers. Scroll slowly if you don’t want to give everything away. (The full solution is a little further down.)
A warning about the tricky parts
YEN and EURO are both currencies, but they have different meanings nowadays. (I had to google YEN, to be completely transparent.)
DEN is a verb and does not fit with NATURE.
O does not go with K.
POWER and FORTUNE are things that ambitious people pursue, but they don’t go together.
What are the categories in today’s Connections?
DOUBLE NOTE: THE SOLUTION IS BELOW
Are you ready to learn the answers to today’s Connections puzzle? I’m giving them all away below.
What are the yellow words in today’s Connections?
The yellow grouping is considered the most straightforward. The theme for today’s yellow grouping is YEARN and the words are: DESIRE, LONG, PINE, YEN.
What are the green words in today’s Connections?
The green grouping should be the second easiest. The theme for today’s green category is MAGAZINES and the words are: FORTUNE, MAD, NATURE, O.
What are the blue words in today’s Connections?
The blue grouping is the second most difficult. The theme for today’s blue category is CHARACTERS IN BOND FILMS and the words are: BOND, M, MONEYPENNY, Q.
What are the purple words in today’s Connections?
The purple grouping is considered the most difficult. The theme for today’s purple category is WORDS THAT PRECEDE “POP” IN MUSIC GENRES and the words are: BUBBLEGUM, EURO, K, POWER.
How I solved today’s connections
After a quick scan, I see two possible categories: currency types and Bond characters.
The Bond version seems easier to get, so let’s grab that one: BOND, M, Q, MONEYPENNY. 🟦
EURO and YEN are the only two currencies I know for sure are correct, so I’ll keep looking around for a while.
EURO and POWER could be part of the “___ TRIP” category, but I’m not sure yet.
DESIRE, PINE and LONG seem to be synonyms for wanting something, but I don’t know what else could go with them. I have a hunch that YEN and EURO might not actually refer to currencies, so I do some Googling and find out that YEN also refer to desire. 🟨
Hmm, the last eight words are tricky: NATURE, O, FORTUNE, and MAD could all be publications, but they seem a bit mismatched. NATURE is a scientific journal, and the rest are more informal journals. Oh, maybe that is correct, because the other four words all seem like pop genres. Let’s try it. 🟩 Yay!
That means BUBBLEGUM, EURO, K and POWER are all types of pop music. 🟪
Connections Puzzle #390 🟦🟦🟦🟦 🟨🟨🟨🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩 🟪🟪🟪🟪
How to play Connections
I have a full manual for playing Connectionsbut here’s a refresher on the rules:
First, find the Connections game on the New York Times website or in their Games app (formerly the Crossword app). You’ll see a game board with 16 tiles, each with one word or phrase. Your task is to pick a group of four tiles that have something in common. Often they’re all the same type (for example, RAIN, PRUNE, HAIL, and SNOW are all types of wet weather), but sometimes they involve puns (for example, BUCKET, GUEST, TOP TEN, and WISH are all types of lists: bucket list, guest list, etc.).
Select four items and click the Submit button. If you guess correctly, the category and color will be revealed. (Yellow is easiest, followed by green, then blue, then purple.) If you guess wrong, you’ll get a chance to try again.
You win if you correctly identify all four groups. But if you make four mistakes before you finish, the game is over and the answers are revealed.
How to gain connections
The most important thing to know about winning Connections is that the groupings are designed to be tricky. Expect overlapping groups. For example, one puzzle appeared to have six breakfast items: BACON, EGG, PANCAKE, OMELET, WAFFLE, and CEREAL. But BACON turned out to be in a group of painters along with CLOSE, MUNCH, and WHISTLER, and EGG was in a group of things that come by the dozen (along with JUROR, ROSE, and MONTH). So don’t hit “submit” until you’ve confirmed your group of four only those four things.
If you’re stuck, another strategy is to look at the words that seem to be No connection to the others. If the only thing that comes to mind when you see WHISTLER is the painting nicknamed “Whistler’s Mother,” you may be on the right track. When I solved that, I googled to see if there was a painter named Close, because Close didn’t fit any of the obvious themes either.
Another way to win when you are stuck is of course to read some useful hints. That is why we share these tips every day. Come back tomorrow for the next puzzle!