Looking for today's Connections answers? The Connections answers on July 25 for puzzle #410 are a smidge harder than yesterday's answers, with the Connections Companion rating this puzzle's difficulty at 2.6 out of 5.
Every day, we update this article with Connections hints and tips to help you find all 4 of today's answers. And if the hints aren't enough, you'll find all 4 answers below, with the category titles and the correlating words. Plus, we're including a reflection on yesterday's puzzle, #409, in case you're reading this in a different time zone.
Spoilers lie ahead for Connections #410. Only read on if you want to know today's Connections answers.
Alternatively, visit our how to play NYT Connections guide for tips on how to solve the puzzle without our help.
Today's Connections answer — hints to help you solve it
Unlike our guide to today's Wordle answer, where we recommend the best Wordle start words as your strategy, solving Connections relies on identifying connecting categories among 16 words. Each category's difficulty level is represented by a color; yellow is the easiest grouping, and purple is the most challenging. Once you've made 4 mistakes in your guesses, the answers will be revealed, so hints can be helpful.
If you need hints to solve the groupings, then here are the themes of each, based on the order of difficulty:
- 🟨 Yellow: Ancient writing surfaces
- 🟩 Green: Lead, as a TV program
- 🟦 Blue: Natural ability
- 🟪 Purple: Wrapped things
These hints should get you at least some of the way towards finding today's Connections answers. If not, then you can read on for bigger clues; or, if you just want to know the answer, then scroll down further.
Here's a larger hint: Today's puzzle is all about mediums of communication, but it did make me want a wrap. Oh, and perhaps you'll have a gift for it.
Today's Connections answers
So, what are today's Connections answers for game #409?
Drumroll, please...
- 🟨 Ancient writing surfaces: Clay, papyrus, parchment, wax
- 🟩 Lead, as a TV program: Anchor, host, moderate, present
- 🟦 Natural ability: Faculty, flair, instinct, talent
- 🟪 Wrapped things: Burrito, gift, mummy, sprain
Yesterday's puzzle was full of trap words and while easier, today's puzzle has a couple and one that has me peeved.
There isn't really a trap for the yellow category to kick things off. Clay, papyrus, parchment and wax are all forms of writing surfaces.
I did briefly fall for the gift/present trap but nothing else really matches with those. Before I filled up the green category with anchor, host, moderate and present I was spending my time getting strikes around blue category. I had gift with flair, instinct and talent which in my mind works far better than faculty. Yes, faculty makes sense but screw that. Gift is the more relevant word, especially in a game that regularly uses colloquialisms.
After taking strikes for the blue category and becoming more and more annoying, I switched over to Purple and snagged burrito, gift, mummy and sprain. It worked they are indeed all things that are wrapped up.
I am writing today's guide an hour or so after solving and I find myself still annoyed by faculty. Rather watch that Josh Hartnett and Usher horror movie than deal with that word for that category.
Yesterday's Connections answers
Reading this in a later time zone? Here are the Connections answers for game #409, which had a difficulty rating of 2.4 out of 5, according to the Connections Companion.
This week the trend has supposedly been that the puzzles get easier as the days go on. We started at 3.7 rating and today is allegedly a 2.4.
For an easier puzzle it is so full of traps that I spent the whole time wondering how it was rated so low in difficulty. I would not be surprised if many puzzlers fail today. I think if you don't knock out yellow or purple first and get caught up trying to fit things around the traps, it'll really get you tripped up.
The first trap that got me was around the blue category.
I had calf and kid right off, since those are the two starting words. I saw fawn soon after and cub. I was wrong. Kid works since it's what you call a baby goat, but they got me there. Kit was also available so I swapped the two to get the blue category.
The second trap for me was around body parts and chicken cuts. I was trying to shove shoulder, rib, breast and thigh into a category. It doesn't work. Strike two.
I saw the poultry cuts soon after and was able to clear that nasty bit.
The purple and yellow categories were easier to fill out after that. I actually liked the yellow category which is rare since they're usually quite obvious fills.
The purple category was also interesting but I was ready to be out of this one by the time I got to barge, jostle, shoulder and muscle.
