A little help. Your own aha.

Connections #786
hints & answers for August 5, 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 August 5, 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 M, S, T and U. These initials are in sorted order.

Show one word

METRO belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

SUBTERRANEAN TRANSIT

Reveal all four words
  • METRO
  • SUBWAY
  • TUBE
  • UNDERGROUND

Green group

A little trickier

2/4
First-letter clue

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

Show one word

CUBE belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

MAKE INTO SMALLER PIECES WHILE COOKING

Reveal all four words
  • CUBE
  • GRATE
  • MINCE
  • SLICE

Blue group

More challenging

3/4
First-letter clue

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

Show one word

CARROT belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

USED TO DECORATE A SNOWMAN

Reveal all four words
  • CARROT
  • COAL
  • PIPE
  • SCARF

Purple group

Wordplay & surprises

4/4
Wordplay hint

Try adding the same ending to each entry.

Show one word

DRESS belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

___ CODE

Reveal all four words
  • DRESS
  • HEALTH
  • SECRET
  • ZIP

Each entry comes before "CODE" to form a word, expression or name: DRESS → DRESS CODE; HEALTH → HEALTH CODE; SECRET → SECRET CODE; ZIP → ZIP CODE.

Show categories only
  • Yellow: SUBTERRANEAN TRANSIT
  • Green: MAKE INTO SMALLER PIECES WHILE COOKING
  • Blue: USED TO DECORATE A SNOWMAN
  • Purple: ___ CODE

Ready for the full solution?

All four categories and their words, together.

Reveal all four answers

Yellow

SUBTERRANEAN TRANSIT

METRO · SUBWAY · TUBE · UNDERGROUND

Green

MAKE INTO SMALLER PIECES WHILE COOKING

CUBE · GRATE · MINCE · SLICE

Blue

USED TO DECORATE A SNOWMAN

CARROT · COAL · PIPE · SCARF

Purple

___ CODE

DRESS · HEALTH · SECRET · ZIP

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.