A little help. Your own aha.

Connections #68
hints & answers for August 18, 2023

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

This reference always shows August 18, 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
First-letter clue

Look for four entries beginning with C, G, P and Q. These initials are in sorted order.

Show one word

CUP belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

UNITS OF VOLUME

Reveal all four words
  • CUP
  • GALLON
  • PINT
  • QUART

Green group

A little trickier

2/4
First-letter clue

Look for four entries beginning with A, Q, S and V. These initials are in sorted order.

Show one word

AWFUL belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

EXTREMELY

Reveal all four words
  • AWFUL
  • QUITE
  • SUPER
  • VERY

Blue group

More challenging

3/4
First-letter clue

Look for four entries beginning with R, R, S and W. These initials are in sorted order.

Show one word

RAND belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

WORLD CURRENCIES

Reveal all four words
  • RAND
  • REAL
  • STERLING
  • WON

Purple group

Wordplay & surprises

4/4
Wordplay hint

Try adding the same ending to each entry.

Show one word

CARROT belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

___ CAKE

Reveal all four words
  • CARROT
  • COFFEE
  • POUND
  • SPONGE

Each entry comes before "CAKE" to form a word, expression or name: CARROT → CARROT CAKE; COFFEE → COFFEE CAKE; POUND → POUND CAKE; SPONGE → SPONGE CAKE.

Show categories only
  • Yellow: UNITS OF VOLUME
  • Green: EXTREMELY
  • Blue: WORLD CURRENCIES
  • Purple: ___ CAKE

Ready for the full solution?

All four categories and their words, together.

Reveal all four answers

Yellow

UNITS OF VOLUME

CUP · GALLON · PINT · QUART

Green

EXTREMELY

AWFUL · QUITE · SUPER · VERY

Blue

WORLD CURRENCIES

RAND · REAL · STERLING · WON

Purple

___ CAKE

CARROT · COFFEE · POUND · SPONGE

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.

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.