NYT Connections Hints December 22: Answers and Groupings for Puzzle #925

The NYT Connections hints December 22 puzzle, numbered #925, challenged players with layered wordplay and a deceptive purple category. The New York Times released the puzzle on December 22, 2025, as part of its daily word games lineup.

Players reported difficulty spotting hidden patterns, especially in the final group. The puzzle required careful reading and attention to word structure rather than surface meanings.

NYT Connections Hints December 22 Explained

The NYT Connections hints December 22 focused on sorting 16 words into four logical groups. Each group shared a single theme, ranked from the most direct to the most complex.

The yellow group, considered the easiest, centered on the idea of an influx. The correct answers were rash, rush, surge, and wave. These words all describe a sudden or strong movement inward.

The green group followed next and used the theme of subsequent. The answers were coming, following, future, and later. Each term refers to something that happens after a current moment.

The blue group shifted toward everyday categories. The theme was kinds of cards. The four correct words were business, greeting, membership, and playing. These are common card types used in daily life and leisure.

The purple group caused the most confusion. Its theme was colors minus the last letter. The correct answers were brow from brown, cya from cyan, pin from pink, and whit from white. This group relied on visual recognition of altered spellings.

According to coverage from outlets such as CNET, purple groups often test pattern recognition rather than vocabulary. This puzzle followed that trend closely.

Why Puzzle #925 Stood Out

Puzzle #925 stood out because it blended straightforward definitions with hidden-letter manipulation. Many players solved three groups quickly but stalled on the final four words.

The structure rewarded patience and double-checking assumptions. Words that seemed unrelated at first revealed a clear connection once spelling changes were noticed.

This approach reflects the evolving design of NYT Connections. Recent puzzles increasingly rely on visual or structural tricks instead of direct synonyms.

The game continues to grow in popularity alongside Wordle and Strands. The New York Times now also offers a Connections Bot that analyzes player performance and accuracy after each game.

NYT Connections hints December 22 highlighted how small letter changes can completely alter difficulty. Puzzle #925 reinforced the importance of slowing down and examining every word closely.

FYI (keeping you in the loop)-

Q1: What were the NYT Connections answers for December 22?

The answers were grouped into four themes: influx, subsequent, kinds of cards, and colors minus the last letter. Each group contained four words.

Q2: Why was the purple group hard in puzzle #925?

The purple group required players to recognize color names with the final letter removed. This made the connection less obvious at first glance.

Q3: Is NYT Connections harder than Wordle?

Many players say Connections feels harder because it tests categorization skills instead of guessing a single word. Difficulty varies by puzzle.

Q4: How many groups are in an NYT Connections puzzle?

Each puzzle has four groups of four words. The groups are ranked by difficulty from yellow to purple.

Q5: Where can players track their Connections performance?

Registered players can use the Connections Bot from The New York Times to review scores, win rates, and puzzle history.