A little help. Your own aha.

Connections #122
hints & answers for October 11, 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 October 11, 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 A, C, C and L. These initials are in sorted order.

Show one word

ACTION belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

FILM SET DIRECTIVES

Reveal all four words
  • ACTION
  • CAMERA
  • CUT
  • LIGHTS

Green group

A little trickier

2/4
First-letter clue

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

Show one word

CAN belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

CONDITIONAL WORDS

Reveal all four words
  • CAN
  • COULD
  • MAY
  • MIGHT

Blue group

More challenging

3/4
Gentle hint

Ahead of the rest in importance or position.

Show one word

HEAD belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

FOREMOST

Reveal all four words
  • HEAD
  • LEAD
  • PRIME
  • TOP

Purple group

Wordplay & surprises

4/4
Wordplay hint

Try adding the same ending to each entry.

Show one word

BUTCHER belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

___ PAPER

Reveal all four words
  • BUTCHER
  • SCRAP
  • TOILET
  • WAX

Each entry comes before "PAPER" to form a word, expression or name: BUTCHER → BUTCHER PAPER; SCRAP → SCRAP PAPER; TOILET → TOILET PAPER; WAX → WAX PAPER.

Show categories only
  • Yellow: FILM SET DIRECTIVES
  • Green: CONDITIONAL WORDS
  • Blue: FOREMOST
  • Purple: ___ PAPER

Ready for the full solution?

All four categories and their words, together.

Reveal all four answers

Yellow

FILM SET DIRECTIVES

ACTION · CAMERA · CUT · LIGHTS

Green

CONDITIONAL WORDS

CAN · COULD · MAY · MIGHT

Blue

FOREMOST

HEAD · LEAD · PRIME · TOP

Purple

___ PAPER

BUTCHER · SCRAP · TOILET · WAX

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.