The Monday edition of NYT Connections arrives with puzzle #953, serving up a grid that rewards scientific literacy and financial vocabulary. Today's challenge particularly favors physics enthusiasts and those who can spot sneaky phrase completions.
What Makes Connections Tick
For newcomers, NYT Connections presents 16 words that must be sorted into four thematic groups of four.
The twist?
You're limited to four mistakes, and the color-coded difficulty system (yellow being easiest, purple being trickiest) means surface-level connections often mislead.
Since its June 2023 launch, Connections has carved out its niche in the Times' puzzle ecosystem, standing alongside Wordle and the crossword as a daily ritual for millions of players worldwide.
The game's genius lies in its red herrings, words that could fit multiple categories but belong in only one.
Today's Grid at a Glance
Here are the 16 words staring back at you in puzzle #953:
SILVER | MINT | STUDY | TIME
FIX | BUDDING | MASS | BUNDLE
FRESH | CURRENT | WAD | SAND
NAIVE | FORTUNE | LENGTH | NEW
A seemingly random collection that somehow connects into four perfect categories.
Strategic Hints (No Spoilers Yet)
Yellow Category Nudge: Think about synonyms for someone just starting out or lacking experience.
Green Category Clue: These are all terms for large amounts of money, though one might initially seem like a plant.
Blue Category Hint: Physics students will recognize these as fundamental measurable quantities.
Purple Category Teaser: Each of these words can follow "quick" to form common phrases.
The Full Solutions
Last chance to solve independently: answers below
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Yellow (Inexperienced): BUDDING, FRESH, NAIVE, NEW
These four words all describe someone or something at the beginning stages, lacking experience or maturity.
"Budding" suggests early development, "fresh" implies newness, "naive" indicates lack of worldly experience, and "new" is the most straightforward descriptor of recent origin.
Green (Money-mouth face emoji): BUNDLE, FORTUNE, MINT, WAD
This category collects slang and formal terms for large sums of money.
"Bundle" and "wad" are informal terms for cash, "fortune" suggests great wealth, and "mint" refers both to where money is made and to being extremely wealthy.
Blue (Measured by SI Units): CURRENT, LENGTH, MASS, TIME
These represent four fundamental physical quantities measured by the International System of Units.
Current (electric current measured in amperes), length (measured in meters), mass (measured in kilograms), and time (measured in seconds) form the backbone of scientific measurement.
Purple (Words After "QUICK"): FIX, SAND, SILVER, STUDY
The trickiest category requires recognizing common phrases where these words follow "quick."
"Quick fix," "quicksand," "quicksilver," and "quick study" are all established English expressions that complete the pattern.
The Verdict
Puzzle #953 registers as moderate difficulty with a sting in the tail.
Yellow falls quickly for anyone who recognizes synonym clusters, while green requires thinking about financial slang.
Blue separates the science buffs from the casual observers.
Purple, predictably, is the streak-ender, that phrase completion trick won't reveal itself without serious lateral thinking.
The real trap lies in words like "mint" and "silver" that could easily mislead solvers toward a coinage or precious metals category.
"Current" also presents a double threat, potentially fitting with "fresh" or "new" before revealing its scientific identity.
Reset and Repeat
Tomorrow's puzzle drops at midnight in your timezone.
Until then, reflect on today's performance: did you spot the SI units connection, or did the moneybag terms trip you up?
The beauty lies not in perfection but in training your brain to spot these hidden patterns.
For now, puzzle #953 is solved.
See you at midnight for round #954.
