NYT Connections Hints October 19: Answers and Full Puzzle Breakdown for #861

Today’s NYT Connections puzzle for October 19, 2025 (#861) is here, and it’s a fun mix of wordplay, clever categories, and one particularly tricky purple group. If you’re stuck or just want to check your answers, we’ve got all the hints, solutions, and a full breakdown of each group below. The puzzle, published daily by The New York Times Games, continues to challenge players with its unique blend of vocabulary, lateral thinking, and themed categories.

Each day, Connections offers 16 words that must be sorted into four groups of four, each with a shared theme. The categories range from straightforward to subtle, and today’s puzzle includes everything from book terminology to candy bar wordplay. Let’s break down everything you need to solve it.

All NYT Connections Hints and Solutions for October 19, 2025 (#861)

Today’s puzzle offers a balanced mix of easy and tough categories. The yellow group is straightforward, while the purple group requires some classic Connections-style letter manipulation. Below are the four hints provided for each group, listed from easiest to hardest:

• Yellow group hint: Tip over.
• Green group hint: Time to read.
• Blue group hint: Think tantrums.
• Purple group hint: Trick-or-treat treats, with a different letter.

Using those clues, here are the completed categories and their solutions:

✅ Yellow Group – Topple

Words: fall, spill, tumble, wipeout

Explanation: These all relate to losing balance or tipping over. This was the easiest group today and a good place to start.

✅ Green Group – Part of a Book

Words: cover, jacket, leaves, spine

Explanation: These are all parts of a physical book. “Leaves” might trip some players up, but it refers to pages.

✅ Blue Group – Lose It, with “Out”

Words: bug, flip, freak, wig

Explanation: Add “out” to each word (bug out, flip out, freak out, wig out) and you get phrases that mean “lose control.”

✅ Purple Group – Chocolate Bars Plus a Letter

Words: crunchy, dover, marsh, skort

Explanation: Each word is a well-known candy bar with an extra letter added: Crunch + Y, Dove + R, Mars + H, Skor + T. This is a classic Connections twist and the toughest group today.

Strategy and Takeaways from Today’s Puzzle

Today’s NYT Connections puzzle was a good balance of accessible and challenging. The yellow and green groups should have been solvable early, but the blue and especially the purple group required deeper thinking. The trick with the purple group was recognizing the candy bars hidden inside slightly altered words — a recurring type of puzzle in Connections that rewards players who notice spelling patterns.

The “lose it, with ‘out’” category is another example of how Connections often plays with phrasal verbs. Spotting the common phrase structure is key to cracking these types of clues quickly.

Overall, puzzle #861 is a satisfying solve, with a little something for every skill level — from straightforward vocabulary to creative wordplay.

FYI (keeping you in the loop)-

Q1: What is the yellow group in today’s NYT Connections?

The yellow group is “Topple,” with the answers fall, spill, tumble, and wipeout.

Q2: What is the most difficult group in today’s puzzle?

The purple group is the trickiest, featuring candy bars with added letters: crunchy, dover, marsh, and skort.

Q3: What is the answer for the blue group in Connections #861?

The blue group is “Lose it, with ‘out,’” including bug, flip, freak, and wig.

Q4: How often does NYT Connections use candy bar themes?

Wordplay based on brand names like candy bars appears periodically in Connections, often in the purple category.

Q5: Where can I find daily NYT Connections hints?

Hints are available each day from outlets like CNET and The New York Times Games section itself.