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Connections October 26, 2026: Hints & Answers (#1331)

edited by Wyna Liu.

Recap

The puzzle required grouping 16 tiles into four categories, ranging from casual responses to horror movie titles with a twist.

The sixteen tiles

The sixteen tiles as dealt. Reveal a group below to tint and caption its tiles here.

WELCOMEHALLOWEEKCHILLINGTOYYOGAJAWNSPORTINGPRAYERPSYCHSHOUNDMANAGINGWRESTLINGSAME OLDHOSTEDHERDINGNOT BAD

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.

  1. Four one-line nudges, one per group

    The softest hint there is.

    Yellow
    Casual replies
    Green
    Exercise surfaces
    Blue
    Canine categories
    Purple
    Spooky twists
  2. What linked each group, described

    Still no titles and no tiles named.

    Yellow group

    These phrases are common ways to respond to a question about one's well-being.

    Green group

    These types of mats are often associated with physical activity or spiritual practice.

    Blue group

    These groups classify dog breeds according to their characteristics and uses.

    Purple group

    These movie titles are familiar horror films with a slight modification to their names.

  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. 2 of the sixteen tiles were more than one word.

    Tiles
    16 across 4 groups
    Longest tile
    9 characters
    Shortest tile
    3 characters
    Multi-word tiles
    2
    Back to the sixteen tiles
  4. The trap on this board

    Which tiles pulled in two directions.

    Some cards could fit into multiple categories at first glance, particularly 'HOSTED' and 'JAWN', which might seem related to different themes.

  5. The four category titles

    Half the answer.

    Yellow
    RESPONSES TO "HOW ARE YOU?"
    Green
    KINDS OF MATS
    Blue
    AKC DOG BREED GROUPS
    Purple
    HORROR MOVIES WITH LAST LETTER CHANGED
  6. One tile from each group

    The anchor most people misplaced, matched to its title.

    Yellow — RESPONSES TO "HOW ARE YOU?"
    MANAGING
    Green — KINDS OF MATS
    WRESTLING
    Blue — AKC DOG BREED GROUPS
    SPORTING
    Purple — HORROR MOVIES WITH LAST LETTER CHANGED
    PSYCHS
    Open the full groupings

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

    RESPONSES TO "HOW ARE YOU?"

    CHILLING, MANAGING, NOT BAD, SAME OLD. The yellow group, 'RESPONSES TO "HOW ARE YOU?"', includes 'CHILLING', 'MANAGING', 'NOT BAD', and 'SAME OLD'.

  • Green group · 4 tiles

    KINDS OF MATS

    PRAYER, WELCOME, WRESTLING, YOGA. The green group, 'KINDS OF MATS', consists of 'PRAYER', 'WELCOME', 'WRESTLING', and 'YOGA'.

  • Blue group · 4 tiles

    AKC DOG BREED GROUPS

    HERDING, HOUND, SPORTING, TOY. The blue group, 'AKC DOG BREED GROUPS', comprises 'HERDING', 'HOUND', 'SPORTING', and 'TOY'.

  • Purple group · 4 tiles

    HORROR MOVIES WITH LAST LETTER CHANGED

    HALLOWEEK, HOSTED, JAWN, PSYCHS. The purple group, 'HORROR MOVIES WITH LAST LETTER CHANGED', features 'HALLOWEEK', 'HOSTED', 'JAWN', and 'PSYCHS'.

This board by the numbers

Puzzle
(#1331) · Monday, October 26, 2026
Tiles
16 in a 4 × 4 grid
Groups
4, yellow to purple
Multi-word tiles
2
Longest tile
WRESTLING
Mistakes allowed
4 before the board locked

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