NYT Connections hints and answers for Thursday, May 29 (game #718)

NYT Connections homescreen on a phone, on a purple background
(Image credit: New York Times)
Looking for a different day?

A new NYT Connections puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Wednesday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Connections hints and answers for Wednesday, May 28 (game #717).

Good morning! Let's play Connections, the NYT's clever word game that challenges you to group answers in various categories. It can be tough, so read on if you need Connections hints.

What should you do once you've finished? Why, play some more word games of course. I've also got daily Strands hints and answers and Quordle hints and answers articles if you need help for those too, while Marc's Wordle today page covers the original viral word game.

SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Connections today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

NYT Connections today (game #718) - today's words

NYT Connections hints for game 718 on a purple background

(Image credit: New York Times)

Today's NYT Connections words are…

  • FROST
  • RIGHT
  • MUSCULAR
  • HONOR
  • HAIL
  • FIT
  • POLISH
  • POWDER
  • PROPER
  • ENTHUSIAST
  • NUDE
  • APPLAUD
  • SPRINKLE
  • PRAISE
  • APT
  • GLAZE

NYT Connections today (game #718) - hint #1 - group hints

What are some clues for today's NYT Connections groups?

  • YELLOW: Tribute
  • GREEN: Satisfactory
  • BLUE: Dunkin and Krispy
  • PURPLE: Connecting word rhymes with “stuff”

Need more clues?

We're firmly in spoiler territory now, but read on if you want to know what the four theme answers are for today's NYT Connections puzzles…

NYT Connections today (game #718) - hint #2 - group answers

What are the answers for today's NYT Connections groups?

  • YELLOW: SALUTE 
  • GREEN: SUITABLE
  • BLUE: VERBS FOR FINISHING DONUTS
  • PURPLE: WHAT "BUFF" MIGHT MEAN

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

NYT Connections today (game #718) - the answers

NYT Connections answers for game 718 on a purple background

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Connections, game #718, are…

  • YELLOW: SALUTE APPLAUD, HAIL, HONOR, PRAISE
  • GREEN: SUITABLE APT, FIT, PROPER, RIGHT
  • BLUE: VERBS FOR FINISHING DONUTS FROST, GLAZE, POWDER, SPRINKLE
  • PURPLE: WHAT "BUFF" MIGHT MEAN ENTHUSIAST, MUSCULAR, NUDE, POLISH

  • My rating: Easy
  • My score: 1 mistake

Fools jump in... so I immediately thought that FROST, POWDER and SPRINKLE were describing types of snow, added HAIL… and got "one away".

That’s when I realized it had to do with baking instead, although I wasn’t thinking VERBS FOR FINISHING DONUTS.

I got SALUTE next, which was quite tricky for the so-called easiest group and then the SUITABLE green group.

I missed seeing WHAT “BUFF” MIGHT MEAN but four different meanings for one word make it the archetypal hardest Connections group – and I say this as a Connections buff.

How did you do today? Let me know in the comments below.


Yesterday's NYT Connections answers (Wednesday, May 28, game #717)

  • YELLOW: CONNECT BRIDGE, JOIN, LINK, UNITE
  • GREEN: PARTS OF A BIKE CHAIN, PEDAL, SADDLE, WHEEL
  • BLUE: BEST PICTURE WINNERS SINCE 2000 CHICAGO, CRASH, GLADIATOR, MOONLIGHT
  • PURPLE: MUSIC GENRES PLUS A LETTER BLUEST, POPE, ROCKY, SKAT

What is NYT Connections?

NYT Connections is one of several increasingly popular word games made by the New York Times. It challenges you to find groups of four items that share something in common, and each group has a different difficulty level: green is easy, yellow a little harder, blue often quite tough and purple usually very difficult.

On the plus side, you don't technically need to solve the final one, as you'll be able to answer that one by a process of elimination. What's more, you can make up to four mistakes, which gives you a little bit of breathing room.

It's a little more involved than something like Wordle, however, and there are plenty of opportunities for the game to trip you up with tricks. For instance, watch out for homophones and other word games that could disguise the answers.

It's playable for free via the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.

Contributor

Johnny is a freelance pop culture journalist who has been writing about the internet, music, football and famous people since the iPhone was just a twinkle in Steve Jobs' eye. Previously known by the pseudonym the Pop Detective, his journalistic career began making up stories about Madonna's addiction to sausage rolls (this is not true by the way). A man of few talents, his career is rich and various and includes the highs of interviewing Elton John and Blur; and the lows of interviewing Right Said Fred, appearing on a Channel 5 documentary about Peter Kay, and fact-checking the instruction manual for a German cooker. Somehow still affording to live in North London he is at his happiest riding his bicycle and shouting at pigeons.

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