NYT Connections Answer

If you’re nursing a holiday food coma this December 26th, today’s NYT Connections puzzle might be just the mental wake-up call you need. While the post-Christmas brain fog is real, the connections today are relatively straightforward once you navigate a few clever red herrings involving geography and travel.

Whether you're looking for a small NYT Connections hint or the full answer for 2025-12-26, I’ve got you covered. Let’s dive into the grid!

Helpful Hints for Today's Puzzle

Before we reveal the groups, here are some nudges to get you moving in the right direction:

1. Yellow Group Hint: Think about the various archetypes you see in movies set in Los Angeles or San Francisco.
2. Green Group Hint: These are specific styles of humor or types of comedic films.
3. Blue Group Hint: If you looked at your dad’s vinyl collection or listened to "Classic Rock" radio, you’d find all of these.
4. Purple Group Hint: Each of these words can follow a specific color to create a common phrase or proper noun.

NYT Connections Answer for December 26, 2025

Ready for the solutions? Here is the breakdown of the four categories for today's puzzle.

Yellow: California-Based Character Tropes

These are the stereotypical figures often associated with the Golden State in pop culture.

• MOVIE EXEC: The high-powered Hollywood producer.
• SURFER: The laid-back beach dweller.
• TECH BRO: The Silicon Valley entrepreneur.
• VALLEY GIRL: The iconic 80s San Fernando Valley stereotype.

Green: Comedy Subgenres

Each of these words describes a specific "flavor" of comedy found in film and television.

• BUDDY: Movies focused on a duo (e.g., 21 Jump Street).
• CRINGE: Humor derived from social awkwardness (e.g., The Office).
• SCREWBALL: Fast-paced, zany farces from the Golden Age of cinema.
• STONER: Comedies centered around marijuana culture.

Blue: '70s Rock Bands

These legendary bands dominated the airwaves in the 1970s. Many of these double as common nouns or locations, which makes them tricky!

• AMERICA: Known for "A Horse with No Name."
• CHICAGO: Famous for their horn section and hits like "Saturday in the Park."
• FOREIGNER: The band behind "Cold as Ice."
• JOURNEY: The legends responsible for "Don't Stop Believin'."

Purple: Black ___

The trickiest category today involves words that all follow the word "Black."

• FOREST: A delicious cake (Black Forest gateau) or a region in Germany.
• FRIDAY: The massive shopping day after Thanksgiving.
• PANTHER: The sleek wild cat or the Marvel superhero.
• WIDOW: The venomous spider or the Marvel character.

Solving Reflections

Today's puzzle had some fun overlaps. AMERICA and CHICAGO initially look like they might belong with the California tropes, but they don't quite fit the "character archetype" theme. Similarly, JOURNEY and FOREIGNER feel like they could be related to travel, but when you see them alongside the other bands, the classic rock connection clicks into place.

The Green category (Comedy Subgenres) was the most satisfying to solve, as "Screwball" is such a specific term that it usually gives the rest of the group away.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you play NYT Connections?

The goal is to find four groups of four words that share a common link. You select four words and tap "Submit." If you're correct, the group is revealed and color-coded by difficulty (Yellow is easiest, then Green, Blue, and Purple). You have four lives—once you make four mistakes, the game ends.

When does the NYT Connections puzzle reset?

New puzzles are released daily at midnight in your local time zone.

What do the colors mean in Connections?

• Yellow: Most straightforward and obvious.
• Green: Common words or clear categories.
• Blue: Usually involves more specific knowledge (like bands or trivia).
• Purple: The "trickiest" category, often involving wordplay, homophones, or words that follow/precede another word.

Can there be more than one way to group the words?

The editor, Wyna Liu, often includes "red herrings"—words that seem to fit in two places. However, there is only one unique solution where every word fits into exactly one group of four.