Connections August 12, 2026: Hints & Answers (#1243)
Recap
The puzzle featured four groups of connected words, ranging from emotional care and frog species to NBC sitcom surnames and phrases starting with affirmative responses.
The sixteen tiles
The sixteen tiles as dealt. Reveal a group below to tint and caption its tiles here.
Connections hints, one rung at a time
Six rungs, softest first. The recap above already named the groups, so this ladder is here for anyone replaying the board fresh rather than as a spoiler shield.
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Hint 1: Four one-line nudges, one per group
The softest hint there is.
- Yellow
- Emotional care
- Green
- Amphibians
- Blue
- Comedy names
- Purple
- Agreeing phrases
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Hint 2: What linked each group, described
Still no titles and no tiles named.
Yellow group
These words describe ways to preserve or support something intangible over time.
Green group
These terms refer to different species of a certain type of jumping animal.
Blue group
These are surnames of well-known comedians associated with a major US television network.
Purple group
These phrases start with words or expressions that indicate consent or confirmation.
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Hint 3: Board facts
Counted off the sixteen printed tiles.
Sixteen tiles, four groups of four, ordered yellow → green → blue → purple from most to least obvious. 3 of the sixteen tiles were more than one word.
- Tiles
- 16 across 4 groups
- Longest tile
- 11 characters
- Shortest tile
- 4 characters
- Multi-word tiles
- 3
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Hint 4: The trap on this board
Which tiles pulled in two directions.
Some cards could fit into multiple categories at first glance, especially those with multiple meanings or common phrases. Be cautious with words that have various uses or appearances.
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Hint 5: The four category titles
Half the answer.
- Yellow
- HOLD ONTO, AS A FEELING
- Green
- KINDS OF FROGS
- Blue
- NBC SITCOM SURNAMES
- Purple
- STARTING WITH AFFIRMATIVE RESPONSES
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Hint 6: One tile from each group
The anchor most people misplaced, matched to its title.
- Yellow — HOLD ONTO, AS A FEELING
- MAINTAIN
- Green — KINDS OF FROGS
- POISON DART
- Blue — NBC SITCOM SURNAMES
- LEMON
- Purple — STARTING WITH AFFIRMATIVE RESPONSES
- GREAT WHITE
Every Connections group from that board
All four groups, folded. Opening one tints its four tiles above and captions them with the category name.
Yellow group · 4 tiles
HOLD ONTO, AS A FEELING
FOSTER, HARBOR, MAINTAIN, NURSE. The yellow group, 'HOLD ONTO, AS A FEELING', includes the words FOSTER, HARBOR, MAINTAIN, and NURSE, all of which describe ways to preserve or support emotions or feelings over time.
Green group · 4 tiles
KINDS OF FROGS
BULL, GREEN, POISON DART, TREE. The green group, 'KINDS OF FROGS', consists of the words BULL, GREEN, POISON DART, and TREE, which are all names of different frog species.
Blue group · 4 tiles
NBC SITCOM SURNAMES
BENES, BING, LEMON, SCOTT. The blue group, 'NBC SITCOM SURNAMES', comprises the words BENES, BING, LEMON, and SCOTT, which are surnames of famous comedians who have appeared on NBC sitcoms.
Purple group · 4 tiles
STARTING WITH AFFIRMATIVE RESPONSES
FINE PRINT, GOODBYE, GREAT WHITE, OKAYAMA. The purple group, 'STARTING WITH AFFIRMATIVE RESPONSES', includes the phrases FINE PRINT, GOODBYE, GREAT WHITE, and OKAYAMA, which all start with words or expressions that indicate agreement or confirmation.
This board by the numbers
- Puzzle
- (#1243) · Wednesday, August 12, 2026
- Tiles
- 16 in a 4 × 4 grid
- Groups
- 4, yellow to purple
- Multi-word tiles
- 3
- Longest tile
- POISON DART
- Mistakes allowed
- 4 before the board locked
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