NYT Connections today – my hints and answers for Saturday January 11 (game #580)
Good morning! Let’s play Connections, the NYT’s clever word game that challenges you to group answers into different categories. It can be tricky, so read on if you need pointers.
What should you do when you’re done? Of course, play some word games. I also have daily Strands Hints and Answers and Quordle Hints and Answers articles if you need help with those too, while Marc’s Wordle Today page covers the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about today’s NYT Connections is below, so don’t read on if you don’t want to know the answers.
NYT Connections Today (Game #580) – Today’s Words
Today’s words from NYT Connections are…
- CONVERSE
- SURFACE
- FOOD
- NETWORK
- SURFING
- KANGAROO
- TABLE
- TENNIS
- MATRIX
- BREAK
- TRAMPOLINE
- ROSTER
- CIRCULATE
- TAEKWONDO
- ARRAY
- MIX
NYT Connections Today (Game #580) – Hint #1 – Group Hints
What are some pointers for current NYT Connections groups?
- YELLOW: Everything in its place
- VEGETABLES: Edit the room
- BLUE: New gold medals
- PURPLE: See you inside….
Need more clues?
We’re firmly in spoiler territory now, but read on if you want to know what the four themed answers are for today’s NYT Connections puzzles…
NYT Connections Today (Game #580) – Hint #2 – Group Answers
What are the answers for today’s NYT Connections groups?
- YELLOW: DISPLAY OF ROWS AND COLUMNS
- GREEN: THINGS TO DO DURING A WORK EVENT
- BLUE: OLYMPIC EVENTS SINCE 2000
- PURPLE: -_COURT
Okay, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL FURTHER IF YOU DON’T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Connections Today (Game #580) – The Answers
The answers to today’s Connections game, game #580, are…
- YELLOW: DISPLAY OF ROWS AND COLUMNS ARRAY, GRID, MATRIX, TABLE
- GREEN: THINGS TO DO DURING A WORK EVENT CIRCULATE, CONVERSE, MINGLE, NETWORK
- BLUE: OLYMPIC EVENTS SINCE 2000 BREAKING, SURFING, TAEKWONDO, TRAMPOLINE
- PURPLE: -_COURT FOOD, KANGAROO, SUPREME, TENNIS
- My rating: Simple
- My score: 1 mistake
Seeing SURFING and BREAKING, TABLE and TENNIS, and CONVERSE and SUPREME (two clothing brands) gave me pause, but I managed to complete today’s puzzle in record time.
The only thing that stopped me was the list of Olympic events. Thinking it was about recently introduced sports, I immediately clicked on BREAKING, introduced in Paris 2024, and TAEKWONDO, which debuted in Sydney. But I mistakenly chose TENNIS, which was actually one of the original Summer Olympics from 1896 to 1924 before I took a 60-year break and returned in 1988.
Unfortunately, breaking will not be part of the 2028 LA Games, as it is part of a long list of discarded events, including tug-of-war, architecture, deer shooting and sculpture. Incredibly, American competitor Walter Winans triumphed in both of the latter events, winning gold in London in 1908 for shooting a running deer from 100 yards and in Paris in 1912 for his horse statue.
Yesterday’s NYT Connections answers (Friday, January 10, game #579)
- YELLOW: BE CONTINGENT (ON) DEPENDENT, HINGE, TRUST, PEACE
- GREEN: “CALM” COOLING, EASY, ENOUGH, RELAXING
- BLUE: INGREDIENTS IN AN OLD FASHIONED WAY BITTERS, ORANGE, RYE, SUGAR
- PURPLE: OFFERED IN THE MONTY HALL PROBLEM CAR, DOOR, GOAT, HOST
What is NYT Connections?
NYT Connections is one of the New York Times’ increasingly popular word games. It challenges you to find groups of four items that have something in common, and each group has a different level of difficulty: green is easy, yellow is a little harder, blue is often quite tough, and purple is usually very difficult.
On the plus side, you technically don’t have to solve the last question because you can answer it by a process of elimination. Plus, you can make up to four mistakes, which gives you some breathing room.
It’s a bit more complicated than something like Wordle, though, and there are plenty of opportunities for the game to trip you up with tricks. For example, beware of homophones and other word games that can obscure the answers.
It is playable for free via the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.