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WordQuartet: Connections Daily Puzzle & Unlimited Mode
Practice pattern recognition, category spotting, and lateral thinking with a fresh Daily puzzle and unlimited modes. Sort 16 words into four hidden groups of four - each linked by a shared theme - before your four hearts run out. Categories range from obvious (colors, animals) to tricky (double meanings, homophones, subtle sets). Play the shared Daily puzzle, then keep going in Unlimited mode with endless original puzzles, power-ups, and streaks. New to the game? Jump to How to Play, or grab today's NYT Connections help.
How to Play WordQuartet Connections (Daily & Unlimited)
The rules are the same in both modes: sort 16 words into four groups of four, where each group shares one specific theme. You have four hearts - each wrong guess costs one. Lose all four and the round ends. Here's how a round actually plays out.
1. Read the whole grid first
Read all 16 words once for their obvious meaning, then again for hidden ones.
Words like *pitch*, *spring*, or *bat* usually belong to a trickier group than the one that jumps out first - that's the trap the puzzle is built around.
2. Find your anchor group
Start with the set you're most sure of. Every puzzle has four difficulty tiers - yellow (easiest), green, blue, and purple (hardest) - and the yellow group is usually findable on the first pass. Locking one group early clears the board and makes the remaining patterns easier to see.
3. Select four words and submit
Tap four words, then hit Submit. If exactly three of your four belong together, you'll see a "One Away" message - a strong signal to swap just one word, not rethink the whole group. And don't worry about repeating yourself: re-submitting a combination you've already tried never costs a heart.
4. Shuffle when you're stuck
The grid layout itself can trick your eye. Shuffle to break up accidental visual pairings - categories you missed often appear when the words sit in new positions.
5. Protect your hearts - and know your lifeline
When you're down to a coin-flip between two words, it's cheaper to test one uncertain word inside a group you mostly trust than to gamble a fully shaky group. In Daily mode, sign in with a free account to use hints. Each hint reveals the theme of one unsolved group without giving away its words.
WordQuartet Connections Tips & Strategy
Categories are specific, not broad. The answer is never "animals" - it's "animals that are also chess pieces." If your theme fits five or six words, it's the wrong theme.
The purple group hides in plain sight. Purple is usually wordplay such as homophones, hidden words, "___ + suffix" families. If solving it first is your style, it pays: cracking purple before anything else earns a +50 bonus.
Clean solves are worth real points. A no-mistake round earns a +250 bonus, dropping to +150, +75, and +25 with one, two, or three mistakes. When in doubt, think longer - speed matters less than accuracy (though finishing under 60 seconds adds +100).
Spot the decoys. Puzzle constructors plant one word that almost fits an easy group. If a group feels finished but one word is doing less work than the others, that word probably belongs to purple.
In Unlimited, spend power-ups smart. Reveal a Hint (1) is the cheapest nudge; Reveal a Pair (2) flags two words that belong together; Solve a Group (3) rescues a bad round but scores zero for that group. You earn +1 power-up for every 3 wins - and finishing without using any earns a +75 bonus
WordQuartet Connections Daily & Unlimited FAQ
What is the Connections game?
Connections is a word-association puzzle where you sort a 4x4 grid of 16 words into four hidden groups of four. Each group shares one specific theme, and the four groups range from easy (yellow) to devious (purple). You have four hearts; each wrong guess costs one.
Is this the same as NYT Connections?
No - this is Word.Tips' own word-grouping game, inspired by the same classic sort-16-into-4 format. Our puzzles are original combinations you won't find anywhere else, and there's no daily limit. We're not affiliated with The New York Times. If you're here for help with today's NYT puzzle, see our Connections hints & answers.
What's the difference between Daily and Unlimited?
Daily is one shared puzzle per day - everyone plays the same grid, it's scored out of 545, and winning on consecutive days builds your streak. Unlimited has no waiting: endless original puzzles from a library of thousands of themed groups, with power-ups, and a score that accumulates across your whole winning run.
How many mistakes can I make?
Four - shown as hearts. A wrong guess costs one heart, but re-trying a combination you've already submitted is free. Run out of hearts and the round ends with the answers revealed; in Unlimited you can start a fresh puzzle instantly.
What do the four colors mean?
Difficulty - and points. Yellow is the most straightforward group (+10), then green (+15), blue (+20), and purple (+25), which is usually built on wordplay. Solving all four by hand scores 70 before bonuses.
How does scoring work?
Points per group solved (10/15/20/25 by color), plus bonuses: finishing under 60 seconds (+100) or 90 seconds (+50), a clean no-mistake solve (up to +250), solving the purple group first (+50), and finishing without hints (+75; in Unlimited, without power-ups). A perfect round is worth 545 points, and Unlimited adds +1000 at every 5th win in a run.
Are there hints?
Yes - every puzzle ships with a written hint for each group, and it's a feature you won't find in other Connections-style games. In Daily mode, sign in free to use them. In Unlimited mode, hints are part of the power-up set.
What are power-ups?
Unlimited mode has three: Reveal a Hint (1) shows one group's theme, Reveal a Pair (2) highlights two words that belong together, and Solve a Group (3) completes the easiest remaining group - though it scores zero for that group. You earn +1 power-up for every 3 wins. A free account is required to use them.
Can I play past puzzles?
Yes - the archive lets you pick any previous Daily from the calendar and play it. Sign in with a free account to open the archive and keep your completion history and streak saved across devices.
How do streaks work?
Win the Daily on consecutive days to build a streak. We keep the board clean - no counters cluttering your game - and celebrate the streak when you win. Signing in keeps it safe if you switch devices.
Can I share my results?
Yes. After each round you get a spoiler-free emoji grid showing your path through the four groups - paste it into any chat or social feed and challenge your friends to beat it.
Do I need to download anything? Is it free?
No download - it plays free in your browser on phone, tablet, and desktop. Today's Daily is open to everyone; a free account adds hints, power-ups, the archive, and saved streaks.