NYT Connections hints and answers for Sunday, September 21

Hey there, Connectors! I hope you’ve had a fantastic weekend so far.

I mentioned a while back that I picked up a pair of earplugs to wear at shows to help protect my hearing, and that I would report back after using them for a while. I’m happy to say that they work well! I can still hear music perfectly clear while wearing the earplugs. Even better, they drown out a lot of the annoying shrieking/screaming from crowds.

There are certainly cheaper options out there than the Loop Switch 2 earplugs, but I like these a lot. They fit comfortably in my ears — they come with several different tip sizes to help with that — and I dig that there are three settings to adjust the level of noise they block out. I also appreciate that they come in a small case with a loop so I can attach them to my keys.

This isn’t an ad or affiliate thing (I’m not even linking to where you can buy them). It’s just something I bought and found useful and thought I’d tell you about.

Before we begin, we have a great little community on Discord, where we chat about NYT Connections, the rest of the NYT games and all kinds of other stuff. Everyone who has joined has been lovely. It’s a fun hangout spot, and you’re more than welcome to join us.

Discord is also the best way to give me any feedback about the column, especially on the rare (or not-so-rare) occasions that I mess something up. I don’t look at Twitter much.

Today’s NYT Connections hints and answers for Sunday, September 21 are coming right up.

What Are Today’s Connections Hints?

Scroll slowly! Just after the hints for each of today’s Connections groups, I’ll reveal what the groups are without immediately telling you which words go into them.

Today’s 16 words are...

• ALE

• TAP

• VEG

• TABLE

• BAR

• LOUNGE

• QUASH

• PINCH

• HIVE

• COUNTER

• SCROLL

• EEK

• SWIPE

• LOAF

• BOOTH

• CHILL

And the level one hints for today’s Connections groups are:

• 🟨 Yellow group — how you navigate your phone or tablet

• 🟩 Green group — take a load off

• 🟦 Blue group — where a host might put you

• 🟪 Purple group — you'd probably have to trim these during prep anyway

One Word For Each Connections Group

Need some extra help? 

Be warned: we’re starting to get into spoiler territory.

Let’s take a look at one word for each group.

Today’s Connections word hints are…

• 🟨 Yellow group — SWIPE

• 🟩 Green group — LOAF

• 🟦 Blue group — BAR

• 🟪 Purple group — QUASH

What Are Today’s Connections Groups?

Today’s Connections groups are...

• 🟨 Yellow group — touchscreen gestures

• 🟩 Green group — relax

• 🟦 Blue group — restaurant seating options

• 🟪 Purple group — vegetables with first letter removed

What Are Today’s Connections Answers?

Spoiler alert! Don’t scroll any further down the page until you’re ready to find out today’s Connections answers.

This is your final warning!

Today’s Connections answers are...

• 🟨 Yellow group — touchscreen gestures (PINCH, SCROLL, SWIPE, TAP)

• 🟩 Green group — relax (CHILL, LOAF, LOUNGE, VEG)

• 🟦 Blue group — restaurant seating options (BAR, BOOTH, COUNTER, TABLE)

• 🟪 Purple group — vegetables with first letter removed (ALE, EEK, HIVE, QUASH)

Lots of pub-related words this time, but you're not fooling me, Connections! Not today. I zipped through this one in no time at all.

The greens were first up, followed by the yellows and then the blues. The purples were the leftovers for me. I didn't figure out that category this time (they refer to kale, leek, chive and squash).

I don't mind much because that means I got win number 205 in a row in the bag. Here's my grid for today:

🟩🟩🟩🟩
🟨🟨🟨🟨
🟦🟦🟦🟦
🟪🟪🟪🟪

That’s all there is to it for today’s Connections clues and answers. I’ll be back over at Forbes for the Monday-Friday editions for the column. And if you haven’t subscribed to Pastimes already, definitely do that! It would be super sweet of you.

P.S. I initially wanted to use this as the green clue, but it was a little too obvious. In any case, I agree with this message wholeheartedly, especially on a Sunday:

And, just for the fun of it, here's Mika's "Grace Kelly" too. Still a great pop song:

Have a great day! Stay hydrated! Be kind to yourself and each other! Call someone you love!

On weekdays, you can find this column over at Forbes. Please follow my blog there for more coverage of NYT Connections and other word games, and even some video game news, insights and analysis. It helps me out a lot!

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