NYT Connections Hints and Answers for October 26, 2025: Puzzle #868 Explained

Looking for help with today’s NYT Connections hints for October 26, 2025? Puzzle #868 brings a fun and balanced mix of music, sports, and language-based clues that kept many players on their toes this Sunday. Here’s a full breakdown of today’s color groups, category explanations, and all the right answers for those who got stuck.

The New York Times Connections puzzle continues to test pattern recognition and cultural recall. Today’s grid had a few clever twists — especially the green and purple categories, which mixed classic references with linguistic playfulness. Let’s dive into all the hints and solutions for Sunday’s game.

NYT Connections #868 Hints for October 26

As usual, there are four color-coded categories in Connections: yellow (easiest), green, blue, and purple (hardest). Below are the guiding hints for each group:

• Yellow group hint: Music.
• Green group hint: The Greatest.
• Blue group hint: Time to compete.
• Purple group hint: Teeny tiny.

These clues set up an engaging balance between cultural references and vocabulary-based logic. The green group in particular earned laughs among Gen Xers, thanks to a nod to an iconic Muhammad Ali quote that many remember from school days.

NYT Connections Answers for October 26, 2025 (#868)

If you’ve tried but can’t quite crack it, here are the correct Connections answers for each color group in today’s puzzle:

🟨 Yellow Group: Kinds of Instruments

Answers: Brass, Percussion, String, Wind.

Music fans likely recognized this category quickly. These are the four main families of musical instruments, often taught in beginner-level music classes.

🟩 Green Group: Words in a Famous Muhammad Ali Quote

Answers: Bee, Butterfly, Float, Sting.

This clever set quotes the legendary boxer’s timeless phrase — “Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.” A fitting tribute to “The Greatest.”

🟦 Blue Group: Kinds of Contests

Answers: Beauty, Popularity, Staring, Talent.

This group connects various types of competitions — from lighthearted challenges like staring contests to major events such as beauty or talent shows.

🟪 Purple Group: Words with Diminutive Suffixes

Answers: Doggy, Droplet, Kitchenette, Starling.

The toughest group of the day. Each word features a diminutive suffix (-y, -let, -ette, -ling) that gives it a smaller or affectionate meaning.

Final Thoughts on Today’s Connections Puzzle

Today’s NYT Connections puzzle (#868) struck a nice balance between fun nostalgia and language learning. The mix of cultural references and linguistic challenges made it satisfying to complete — especially for those who caught the Muhammad Ali theme early. If you managed a perfect streak, this one was a well-earned victory.

Don’t forget: The New York Times recently introduced the Connections Bot, allowing players to track their performance, win rate, and streaks across puzzles, similar to the Wordle Bot.

NYT Connections continues to evolve as a fan-favorite logic game that tests both word knowledge and cultural memory. Tomorrow’s puzzle (#869) will drop fresh at midnight — so stay tuned for more hints and breakdowns.

FYI (keeping you in the loop)-

Q1: What are the NYT Connections hints for October 26, 2025?

The hints are: Music, The Greatest, Time to compete, and Teeny tiny.

Q2: What is the green group in today’s NYT Connections?

The green group includes words from Muhammad Ali’s quote: bee, butterfly, float, sting.

Q3: What is the hardest group in NYT Connections #868?

The purple group was the toughest, featuring words with diminutive suffixes: doggy, droplet, kitchenette, starling.

Q4: What are the yellow words in today’s puzzle?

The yellow group was all about kinds of musical instruments: brass, percussion, string, and wind.

Q5: Who publishes the NYT Connections puzzle?

The game is published daily by The New York Times Games team, alongside Wordle, Strands, and The Mini Crossword.