A little help. Your own aha.

Connections #1
hints & answers for June 12, 2023

Keep the satisfaction of the solve. Get a nudge for one group, reveal a category, or check the answers at your own pace.

June 12, 2023 #1

This reference always shows June 12, 2023. It is released in at least one timezone; every answer stays closed until you reveal it.

Which group has you stuck?

Pick a colour. Reveal one step at a time.

Yellow group

Straightforward

1/4

Gentle relationship clue

Think about what falls from clouds.

Stronger relationship clue

These can arrive as liquid drops or frozen precipitation.

Gentle hint

You might check the forecast before going out in this.

Show one word

HAIL belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

WET WEATHER

Reveal all four words

HAIL
RAIN
SLEET
SNOW

The weather sense is the link; the frozen forms still belong with the liquid one. Hail consists of falling balls or pieces of ice. Rain is water falling from clouds as drops. Sleet can name ice pellets in North American usage, or a mixture of rain and snow in other usage. Snow falls as ice crystals or flakes.

Sources, attribution and reuse

Dictionary-derived explanations identified below are original paraphrases adapted under the stated licence. Original board arrangements and mechanical checks are identified separately; the sources do not endorse this exercise.

Wiktionary contributors, sleet
Sleet can name ice pellets in North American usage, or a mixture of rain and snow in other usage.
Source revision checked. CC BY-SA 4.0.
Original paraphrase of contributor-written definitions or factual article text; no third-party quotations or media are adapted. Adapted text is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Wiktionary contributors, hail
Hail consists of falling balls or pieces of ice.
Source revision checked. CC BY-SA 4.0.
Original paraphrase of contributor-written definitions or factual article text; no third-party quotations or media are adapted. Adapted text is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Wiktionary contributors, snow
Snow falls as ice crystals or flakes.
Source revision checked. CC BY-SA 4.0.
Original paraphrase of contributor-written definitions or factual article text; no third-party quotations or media are adapted. Adapted text is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Wiktionary contributors, rain
Rain is water falling from clouds as drops.
Source revision checked. CC BY-SA 4.0.
Original paraphrase of contributor-written definitions or factual article text; no third-party quotations or media are adapted. Adapted text is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Green group

A little trickier

2/4

Gentle relationship clue

Try sports names rather than ordinary dictionary meanings.

Stronger relationship clue

These are the shortened names of four professional basketball clubs.

Gentle hint

Think of names on a professional basketball scoreboard.

Show one word

BUCKS belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

NBA TEAMS

Reveal all four words

BUCKS
HEAT
JAZZ
NETS

Read each entry as a team name. The animal, temperature, music and equipment meanings are different senses. Bucks completes Milwaukee Bucks, a professional basketball team. Heat completes Miami Heat, a professional basketball team. Jazz completes Utah Jazz, a professional basketball team. Nets completes Brooklyn Nets, a professional basketball team.

Sources, attribution and reuse

Wikipedia contributors, Utah Jazz
Jazz completes Utah Jazz, a professional basketball team.
Source revision checked. CC BY-SA 4.0.
Original paraphrase of contributor-written definitions or factual article text; no third-party quotations or media are adapted. Adapted text is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Wikipedia contributors, Brooklyn Nets
Nets completes Brooklyn Nets, a professional basketball team.
Source revision checked. CC BY-SA 4.0.
Original paraphrase of contributor-written definitions or factual article text; no third-party quotations or media are adapted. Adapted text is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Wikipedia contributors, Miami Heat
Heat completes Miami Heat, a professional basketball team.
Source revision checked. CC BY-SA 4.0.
Original paraphrase of contributor-written definitions or factual article text; no third-party quotations or media are adapted. Adapted text is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Wikipedia contributors, Milwaukee Bucks
Bucks completes Milwaukee Bucks, a professional basketball team.
Source revision checked. CC BY-SA 4.0.
Original paraphrase of contributor-written definitions or factual article text; no third-party quotations or media are adapted. Adapted text is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Blue group

More challenging

3/4

Gentle relationship clue

Look at the things your fingers press while typing.

Stronger relationship clue

These can label computer input keys; one is particularly associated with Mac keyboards.

Gentle hint

Your fingers may press these while working at a computer.

Show one word

OPTION belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

KEYBOARD KEYS

Reveal all four words

OPTION
RETURN
SHIFT
TAB

The words name keys, even though their ordinary meanings can suggest choosing, going back or moving something. The Option key is a modifier key on Apple keyboards. A Return key can start a new line or submit input, depending on the program. The Shift key modifies another key, commonly to enter a capital letter. The Tab key can advance to a tab stop or move between input fields.

Sources, attribution and reuse

Wikipedia contributors, Tab key
The Tab key can advance to a tab stop or move between input fields.
Source revision checked. CC BY-SA 4.0.
Original paraphrase of contributor-written definitions or factual article text; no third-party quotations or media are adapted. Adapted text is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Wikipedia contributors, Shift key
The Shift key modifies another key, commonly to enter a capital letter.
Source revision checked. CC BY-SA 4.0.
Original paraphrase of contributor-written definitions or factual article text; no third-party quotations or media are adapted. Adapted text is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Wikipedia contributors, Enter key
A Return key can start a new line or submit input, depending on the program.
Source revision checked. CC BY-SA 4.0.
Original paraphrase of contributor-written definitions or factual article text; no third-party quotations or media are adapted. Adapted text is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Wikipedia contributors, Option key
The Option key is a modifier key on Apple keyboards.
Source revision checked. CC BY-SA 4.0.
Original paraphrase of contributor-written definitions or factual article text; no third-party quotations or media are adapted. Adapted text is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Purple group

Wordplay & surprises

4/4

Gentle relationship clue

Try changing the direction in which you read.

Stronger relationship clue

Read each whole spelling from right to left.

Gentle hint

Read each one in both directions.

Show one word

KAYAK belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

PALINDROMES

Reveal all four words

KAYAK
LEVEL
MOM
RACECAR

Ignoring spaces and punctuation, each entry reads the same forwards and backwards.

The connection is an exact spelling property: each entry equals its own reversal. Spaces and pronunciation play no role in these four examples. KAYAK reversed is KAYAK. LEVEL reversed is LEVEL. MOM reversed is MOM. RACECAR reversed is RACECAR.

Sources, attribution and reuse

Wiktionary contributors, palindrome
A palindrome has the same spelling when its letters are read in the opposite direction.
Source revision checked. CC BY-SA 4.0.
Original paraphrase of contributor-written definitions or factual article text; no third-party quotations or media are adapted. Adapted text is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Reviewed relationship tags

Independent mechanism: Letter operations. These are curator annotations, not publisher labels.

KAYAK, LEVEL, MOM and RACECAR each equal their own reversal. The letter-operations tag records that exact property of the official PALINDROMES group; it does not describe a topic or infer setter intent.

By FiveLetterWords. Updated 2026-10-04.

Show categories only

Yellow: WET WEATHER
Green: NBA TEAMS
Blue: KEYBOARD KEYS
Purple: PALINDROMES

Ready for the full solution?

All four categories and their words, together.

Reveal all four answers

Yellow

WET WEATHER

HAIL · RAIN · SLEET · SNOW

Green

NBA TEAMS

BUCKS · HEAT · JAZZ · NETS

Blue

KEYBOARD KEYS

OPTION · RETURN · SHIFT · TAB

Purple

PALINDROMES

KAYAK · LEVEL · MOM · RACECAR

The words on your board

Check you have the same puzzle. Reference tiles may appear in a different order from your game.

See the 16 puzzle words

SNOW
LEVEL
SHIFT
KAYAK
HEAT
TAB
BUCKS
RETURN
JAZZ
HAIL
OPTION
RAIN
SLEET
RACECAR
MOM
NETS

Look up an unfamiliar word or phrase

General dictionary meanings may differ from the puzzle’s intended sense. These links do not identify a group. Longer entries and names open a Wiktionary search; an entry may be missing or have several senses.

By FiveLetterWords · Guide updated October 4, 2026

This puzzle’s recorded solution

The date and puzzle number identify this exact board. Use the individual group controls to compare its recorded categories and words, then return to the archive to find another puzzle.

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About the answers and hints

Categories and answers follow the recorded NYT puzzle. Our hints are independent: some are original category clues, while others give the first letters of the four words. Each hint is labelled so you can choose how much help to take.

Group colours follow the puzzle’s yellow, green, blue and purple order, from the most straightforward to the trickiest. Your own experience may differ. The reference tiles may appear in a different order from your game. Picture puzzles have separately hidden descriptions, since a description can give away the wordplay.

The daily page starts with the UTC puzzle date and, with JavaScript enabled, checks the puzzle for your local time zone. Every reveal starts closed when the date changes. Play Connections at The New York Times or contact us about a correction.

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This game

Connections #1
hints & answers for June 12, 2023

Which group has you stuck?

Yellow group

Green group

Blue group

Purple group

Ready for the full solution?

WET WEATHER

NBA TEAMS

KEYBOARD KEYS

PALINDROMES

This puzzle’s recorded solution

Continue from this date