Yesterday · Puzzle #1,262
Yesterday Connections Answer
Mon, Sep 7, 2026Updated By Connections Hint Today
Spoiler-safe. Nothing opens on its own. Each group has its own ladder — take one rung at a time and stop when you have enough.
The grid
sixteen words, ungroupedFABRICATIONFISH STORYTALL TALEYARNCUPHOOKSTRAPUNDERWIRECAR AIR FRESHENERCHRISTMASNEEDLESTURPENTINEPLUTONIUMSCAR TISSUESTITCH MARKERTRAMPOLINE
Reveal ladder
open only what you needYellow groupeasiest
1Shape of the four words
Letter counts run 4 · 8 · 9 · 11. Two of them start with the same letter. two entries are more than one word.
2Shape of the category name
The category name is three words long. This is the yellow group, so trust the most literal reading you have.
3The category name
QUITE THE SAGA
4The 4 words
FABRICATION · FISH STORY · TALL TALE · YARN
Green groupmedium
1Shape of the four words
Letter counts run 3 · 4 · 5 · 9. No two start with the same letter.
2Shape of the category name
The category name is four words long. This is the green group: still literal, but one answer usually has a second meaning.
3The category name
PARTS OF A BRA
4The 4 words
CUP · HOOK · STRAP · UNDERWIRE
Blue grouptricky
1Shape of the four words
Letter counts run 7 · 9 · 10 · 15. Two of them start with the same letter. Exactly one entry is more than one word.
2Shape of the category name
The category name is four words long. This is the blue group, where the link is a shade narrower than it first looks.
3The category name
ASSOCIATED WITH PINE TREES
4The 4 words
CAR AIR FRESHENER · CHRISTMAS · NEEDLES · TURPENTINE
Purple grouphardest
1Shape of the four words
Letter counts run 9 · 10 · 10 · 12. Two of them start with the same letter. two entries are more than one word.
2Shape of the category name
The category name is four words long. This is the purple group, so expect wordplay rather than a category of things.
3The category name
STARTING WITH DISNEY CHARACTERS
4The 4 words
PLUTONIUM · SCAR TISSUE · STITCH MARKER · TRAMPOLINE
The four categories
all four names at onceReveal the four category names
- QUITE THE SAGAYellow
- PARTS OF A BRAGreen
- ASSOCIATED WITH PINE TREESBlue
- STARTING WITH DISNEY CHARACTERSPurple
The full answer
Reveal all four groups
QUITE THE SAGAYellow
FABRICATION · FISH STORY · TALL TALE · YARN
PARTS OF A BRAGreen
CUP · HOOK · STRAP · UNDERWIRE
ASSOCIATED WITH PINE TREESBlue
CAR AIR FRESHENER · CHRISTMAS · NEEDLES · TURPENTINE
STARTING WITH DISNEY CHARACTERSPurple
PLUTONIUM · SCAR TISSUE · STITCH MARKER · TRAMPOLINE
Explore more
Sports Edition Connections Sports Edition hintsA separate daily puzzle built entirely from sports — same rules, sportier traps. Open Sports EditionArticle How to Play ConnectionsLearn how to play Connections to understand the rules, the four color-coded levels, and spot tricky word… Read itArticle "One away" is a clue, not a consolationThe game tells you when three of your four belong together. Most players treat that as a near miss and start… Read it
Background & guide
Yesterday's Connections, explained
Here are the four groups from yesterday's Connections, sorted from the easiest yellow group to the trickiest purple. If you came close but missed by one, it was probably the purple category — that's where the New York Times usually hides the wordplay and the misdirection.
Playing today instead? Head to today's hints, where nothing is grouped until you open it. Older puzzles live in the answer archive, grouped by year.
FAQ
How is yesterday's answer laid out?
Open the reveal to see each of the four groups with its category name and four words, sorted from the easy yellow group to the tricky purple one.
Why is purple usually the hardest group?
Purple is where Connections hides the wordplay — puns, hidden words or a shared pattern rather than a plain theme — so it's the group most players leave for last.
How do the colours rank the groups?
Yellow is the easiest, then green, then blue, and purple is usually the trickiest. The colours are the puzzle's own difficulty order.