Connections is the popular word game that is competing New York Times stablemate, Word, in terms of popularity.

The game was first introduced to the world in June 2023 and the daily puzzle is edited by Wyna Liu.

She thought about how in a year Connections became the second most played game on the NYT app and website.

“The response was really incredible, overwhelming and unexpected,” Liu said Newsweek in June, as the popular game prepared to celebrate its first anniversary.

“It’s exciting that something I care deeply about is resonating with people.”

Play ‘Connections’ instructions

Connections is played by finding a common theme in a table of 16 words. There are four words in each of the four themes, but some words may belong to more than one group. A previous one for example Connections The puzzle had the words catering, host, plan and throw combined into the category ‘Help organize a party’.

Each theme is divided into a color of yellow, blue, green and purple, each reflecting a different difficulty level. Players are given four chances to make a mistake before losing the game. The puzzles are not always simple and use a range of possible associations including homophones and puns.

Some words may belong to more than one category, so players should think carefully before making a choice.

The answers for Wednesday’s puzzle are at the end of the article, so scroll carefully if you want to solve them yourself.

‘Connections’ #494 Clues for Thursday October 17th

Newsweek has helpful tips to help you with today’s game.

Yellow: Outdoor locations.

Vegetable: Taking control of things.

Blue: Movie titles.

Purple: Terms that can precede a legal word.

‘Connections’ #494 Answer for Thursday, October 17

Yellow Category: GRASS AREA

Yellow words: Lawn, greenery, park, garden

Green Category: DEALING

Green words: Address, handle, field, answer

Blue category: FILMS WITH ‘S’ REMOVED

Blue words: Jaw, Goodfella, Swinger, Car

Purple Category: ______ LAW

Purple words: Criminal, Harvard, Lemon, Natural

Have you worked out the answers? If so, congratulations; if not, don’t be put off. Practice makes perfect, and next Connections puzzle will be published on Friday.

Connections is released at midnight in your local time zone, and Newsweek will be back tomorrow with another round of hints and tips.

In the meantime, you could give it a try The New York Times’ other popular game, Wordfor what Newsweek also provides daily tips.