‘Connections’ December 13: Hints and answers for game #551

Connections was barely a year old when it became a global hit.

Released by The New York Times in June 2023, it quickly raced up the newspaper’s rankings as its second-most popular game behind Wordle.

It is a daily word game that requires players to group together words under a common theme and then they can share their results on social media or in messages with friends and family.

Newsweek has put together some advice on how to play as well as hints and the answers for Friday’s game, so be careful scrolling down if you want to solve it by yourself.

How to Play ‘Connections’

The categories vary in difficulty from yellow to green to blue to purple, with yellow considered the easiest category and purple the trickiest.

For example, a recent game linked the words “braid,” “bun,” “pony” and “twist” under the category: “Ways to wear your hair up.” This was a blue category.

Once you have selected four words, you click the “submit” button. If your choices match a category, they will appear in the category color and disappear from the grid. If they are incorrect, however, they will remain gray and stay on the board.

If you are stuck, try selecting the “shuffle” button to move the words to a different place on the grid.

“My top advice is to hold off on guessing as long as you can,” Wyna Liu, a crossword editor at The New York Times, previously told Newsweek.

“You might spot a clear category and think you see five words that fit, but don’t try guessing the four until you’re sure which one doesn’t belong. Jumping in too soon can cost you a turn.”