On January 1, 2026, word game enthusiasts around the globe were greeted with a brand new challenge: puzzle #935 of New York Times Connections. The daily puzzle, which has quickly become a staple among fans of wordplay and pattern recognition, offered a fresh test of wit and lateral thinking to kick off the new year. With its now-familiar 4x4 grid and a set of 16 seemingly unrelated words, the goal remained the same: group the words into four distinct categories, each linked by a common thread. But as many players discovered, the devil was in the details—and in the connections.
According to The Economic Times, the January 1st edition of Connections, which is free to play via the NYT Games app and the New York Times website, continued to draw in a devoted crowd. Each day, the puzzle refreshes at midnight, offering just one shot at glory until the next day’s grid appears. Unlike Wordle, which lets players revisit old puzzles, Connections is strictly a one-and-done affair—adding to both its allure and its challenge.
The rules are simple on the surface: players must sort the 16 words into four groups of four, with each group sharing a hidden connection. But as anyone who’s played will tell you, the connections are rarely obvious. The categories are color-coded by difficulty: yellow for the easiest, green for moderate, blue for challenging, and purple for the most abstract. Make more than four mistakes, and it’s game over. Shuffle the board as much as you like, but only one correct solution exists for each day’s puzzle.
For puzzle #935, the official category titles and their answers were eventually revealed (with appropriate spoiler warnings, of course). The yellow group, labeled “Bit of magic,” included the words charm, curse, hex, and spell. The green group, “Remove the covering from,” comprised peel, shell, shuck, and skin. The blue group, “Enthusiast” equivalent, featured buff, head, hound, and rat. And the purple group, the trickiest of all, was “Butter ___,” with the answers fingers, fly, nut, and scotch. As Jagran Josh and Yahoo Tech reported, these groupings tested not just vocabulary, but also the ability to spot subtle patterns and associations.
Hints for each group were provided throughout the day, both by official sources and by a growing community of players sharing their tips and experiences online. For the yellow group, the hint was “A small supernatural trick—think wizarding skills.” The green group’s clue was “To strip away what’s on the surface.” The blue group’s hint read, “A person deeply fixated on a subject,” while the purple group was teased as “A slippery partner—or a creamy ingredient often sold in sticks.” For those who needed a little nudge, one word from each group was offered as an additional hint: charm, shell, head, and scotch.
Players found the puzzle both engaging and, for some, maddening. As one commentator on The Economic Times noted, "Many players find Connections more challenging because it requires identifying abstract relationships rather than guessing a single word." The challenge is compounded by the presence of so-called “trap” words—those that could reasonably fit into more than one group, leading to second-guessing and, sometimes, a string of incorrect guesses. The yellow group, for example, was described by one player as “things Harry Potter characters can do,” while the purple group was summed up as “the creamy stuff you cook with (often in stick form).”
For those who enjoy a little friendly competition, the social aspect of Connections is a big part of its appeal. Like Wordle before it, Connections has inspired players to share their results—and their frustrations—on social media, complete with multi-colored squares that hint at their progress without spoiling the answers. The puzzle’s structure encourages not just solitary play, but also collaboration and discussion. As one fan put it, “Don’t feel bad for taking a peek—these puzzles are designed to confuse you. Since we’re in this together, I’ll share how I did each day.”
The January 1, 2026 puzzle proved to be a bit tougher than usual for some. One solver described their experience: “I made one mistake while solving the purple group. This is the order I solved them in: yellow, green, purple, blue.” For many, the blue and purple groups are consistently the hardest, with the latter often requiring a leap of intuition or knowledge of idiomatic expressions. The purple group’s answers—fingers, fly, nut, and scotch—all complete the phrase “Butter ___,” a connection that’s easy to miss unless you’re familiar with those particular terms.
For those new to the game, a few tips were shared by seasoned players. First, try to find the easy yellow group words first, as they are often synonyms or closely related. When you get a grouping wrong, pay attention to the feedback—“One away” means just one word is out of place, so shuffle things around and try again. If you’re stuck, take a break and return with fresh eyes; sometimes a little distance is all it takes to see the pattern. And don’t be afraid to shuffle the board—sometimes a new arrangement can make the connections pop.
While the puzzle is meant to be enjoyed once a day, its popularity has inspired a cottage industry of hints, spoilers, and community discussion. As reported by The Economic Times, “Catch all the US News, UK News, Canada News, International Breaking News Events, and Latest News Updates on The Economic Times.” The game’s rise mirrors that of Wordle and other daily puzzles, tapping into a universal love of word games and the satisfaction of a challenge met.
For those who missed the puzzle or simply want to revisit the fun, past answers are sometimes shared by the community, though the New York Times itself does not maintain an official archive. The January 1st puzzle, with its clever groupings and tricky associations, is sure to be remembered as a highlight for many players—a fitting start to a year of words, wit, and, of course, connections.
With each new day, Connections continues to captivate, frustrate, and delight its growing audience. Whether you solved puzzle #935 in a flash or found yourself stumped by “Butter ___,” there’s always tomorrow—and another set of words waiting to be grouped, pondered, and, ultimately, connected.
