A little help. Your own aha.

Connections #1236
hints & answers for October 29, 2026

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 29, 2026. 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 P, P, P and W. These initials are in sorted order.

Show one word

PARKING METER belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

THINGS YOU PUT COINS INTO

Reveal all four words
  • PARKING METER
  • PAYPHONE
  • PIGGY BANK
  • WISHING WELL

Green group

A little trickier

2/4
First-letter clue

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

Show one word

ANTARCTICA belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

ASSOCIATED WITH PENGUINS

Reveal all four words
  • ANTARCTICA
  • EMPEROR
  • TUXEDO
  • WADDLE

Blue group

More challenging

3/4
First-letter clue

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

Show one word

GOTHIC belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

ENDS OF FAMOUS FONTS

Reveal all four words
  • GOTHIC
  • ROMAN
  • SANS
  • TYPEWRITER

Purple group

Wordplay & surprises

4/4
First-letter clue

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

Show one word

CALICO belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

THINGS THAT FEATURE THREE COLORS

Reveal all four words
  • CALICO
  • CANDY CORN
  • NEAPOLITAN
  • TRAFFIC LIGHT
Show categories only
  • Yellow: THINGS YOU PUT COINS INTO
  • Green: ASSOCIATED WITH PENGUINS
  • Blue: ENDS OF FAMOUS FONTS
  • Purple: THINGS THAT FEATURE THREE COLORS

Ready for the full solution?

All four categories and their words, together.

Reveal all four answers

Yellow

THINGS YOU PUT COINS INTO

PARKING METER · PAYPHONE · PIGGY BANK · WISHING WELL

Green

ASSOCIATED WITH PENGUINS

ANTARCTICA · EMPEROR · TUXEDO · WADDLE

Blue

ENDS OF FAMOUS FONTS

GOTHIC · ROMAN · SANS · TYPEWRITER

Purple

THINGS THAT FEATURE THREE COLORS

CALICO · CANDY CORN · NEAPOLITAN · TRAFFIC LIGHT

Other spelling matches on this board

No alternative four-entry spelling match was found by the anagram, palindrome, shared-start and shared-ending checks. Semantic overlaps may exist; these checks do not assess them.

These are checked spelling comparisons, not claims about the editor's intent or the most common player mistakes.

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.