A little help. Your own aha.

Connections #659
hints & answers for March 31, 2025

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 March 31, 2025. 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, H, P and T. These initials are in sorted order.

Show one word

ATE belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

CONSUMED

Reveal all four words
  • ATE
  • HAD
  • PUT AWAY
  • TOOK IN

Green group

A little trickier

2/4
First-letter clue

Look for four entries beginning with A, B, T and T. These initials are in sorted order.

Show one word

AS WELL belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

ALSO

Reveal all four words
  • AS WELL
  • BESIDES
  • TO BOOT
  • TOO

Blue group

More challenging

3/4
First-letter clue

Look for four entries beginning with B, D, T and W. These initials are in sorted order.

Show one word

BALANCE belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

ATM OPTIONS

Reveal all four words
  • BALANCE
  • DEPOSIT
  • TRANSFER
  • WITHDRAWAL

Purple group

Wordplay & surprises

4/4
Wordplay hint

Try adding the same ending to each entry.

Show one word

FORE belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

___PLAY

Reveal all four words
  • FORE
  • HORSE
  • SCREEN
  • WORD

Each entry comes before "PLAY" to form a word, expression or name: FORE → FORE PLAY; HORSE → HORSE PLAY; SCREEN → SCREEN PLAY; WORD → WORD PLAY.

Show categories only
  • Yellow: CONSUMED
  • Green: ALSO
  • Blue: ATM OPTIONS
  • Purple: ___PLAY

Ready for the full solution?

All four categories and their words, together.

Reveal all four answers

Yellow

CONSUMED

ATE · HAD · PUT AWAY · TOOK IN

Green

ALSO

AS WELL · BESIDES · TO BOOT · TOO

Blue

ATM OPTIONS

BALANCE · DEPOSIT · TRANSFER · WITHDRAWAL

Purple

___PLAY

FORE · HORSE · SCREEN · WORD

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.