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NYT Connections game #912 was published on Tuesday, December 9, 2025. Start with the spoiler-safe hints below, then continue for the category names, full answer grid and explanations of the rainbow and number-sound wordplay. Because this is an archived puzzle, “today’s” refers to the original headline rather than the date you are reading this.
Game #912 was published on Tuesday, December 9, 2025. This archived guide uses “today’s” because that wording belongs to the original headline; it does not mean the puzzle is current on the date you are reading this.
Spoiler warning: The hints below become progressively more specific, followed by the category names and the complete solution. Stop whenever you have enough help to finish the grid yourself.
Gentle hints for Connections #912
Here are broad clues for the four groups, without revealing their category names:
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- Yellow: Different ways to take something into account.
- Green: Animals associated with stripes or striped markings.
- Blue: People, creatures, symbols and characters commonly linked with rainbows.
- Purple: Say the beginnings of the words aloud. They sound like numbers.
One-word clues
Need a more specific nudge? These representative entries point toward each group:
- Yellow: FACTOR
- Green: CLOWNFISH
- Blue: LEPRECHAUN
- Purple: FIEVEL
Connections #912 categories and answers
Here is the full solution for the December 9, 2025, puzzle:
| Color | Category | Answers |
|---|---|---|
| Yellow | BEAR IN MIND | CONSIDER, COUNT, FACTOR, INCLUDE |
| Green | STRIPED ANIMALS | CLOWNFISH, HONEYBEE, TIGER, ZEBRA |
| Blue | ASSOCIATED WITH RAINBOWS | DOROTHY GALE, LEPRECHAUN, PRIDE, UNICORN |
| Purple | BEGINNING WITH NUMBER HOMOPHONES | FIEVEL, FOREHEAD, TOUCAN, WONDER |
How the trickiest groups work
Yellow: BEAR IN MIND
CONSIDER, COUNT, FACTOR and INCLUDE can all describe taking something into account. You might consider a possibility, count something as part of an assessment, factor it into a calculation or include it in a plan.
FACTOR is especially effective as a decoy because many solvers first see it as a noun, such as a number in a mathematical expression. In this group, it works as a verb: to factor something in is to take it into account.
Green: STRIPED ANIMALS
CLOWNFISH, HONEYBEE, TIGER and ZEBRA are all animals recognized for striped markings. The patterns are not identical—clownfish have bands, honeybees have alternating body stripes, and tigers and zebras have their familiar mammal stripes—but the visual connection is strong enough to form the group.
Blue: ASSOCIATED WITH RAINBOWS
This is the loosest category in the puzzle. The entries are connected to rainbow imagery or cultural references rather than all sharing one literal scientific relationship:
- DOROTHY GALE is associated with “Over the Rainbow” from The Wizard of Oz.
- A LEPRECHAUN is traditionally linked with treasure at the end of a rainbow.
- PRIDE is associated with the rainbow flag, a widely recognized LGBTQ+ symbol.
- A UNICORN frequently appears in colorful, rainbow-themed fantasy imagery.
The broadness is what makes this group difficult. Words such as PRIDE and LEPRECHAUN may stand out quickly, while DOROTHY GALE and UNICORN require a more cultural or imaginative association.
Purple: BEGINNING WITH NUMBER HOMOPHONES
The purple group is based on sound, not meaning. The opening of each word resembles a number when spoken:
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- FOREHEAD begins with a sound like four.
- TOUCAN begins with a sound like two.
- WONDER begins with a sound like one.
These are approximate number-sound beginnings, not exact dictionary homophones for the entire words. Because the entries do not share an obvious definition, this group is often best left until the more semantic categories have been removed.
The complete answer grid
If you want the sixteen entries in one place, the solved grid is:
CONSIDER · COUNT · FACTOR · INCLUDE
CLOWNFISH · HONEYBEE · TIGER · ZEBRA
DOROTHY GALE · LEPRECHAUN · PRIDE · UNICORN
FIEVEL · FOREHEAD · TOUCAN · WONDER
Want more Connections-style puzzles?
After finishing this grid, Connections: Find the Common Threads in 100+ Puzzles of Wit and Wordplay offers additional category-matching puzzles in a physical, screen-free format. It is a related puzzle book—not an answer key for game #912 and not a substitute for access to the New York Times digital archive.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is Connections #912 still today’s NYT puzzle?
No. Connections #912 was published on Tuesday, December 9, 2025. This guide preserves the original “today’s” wording as an archive reference; it is not a claim that the puzzle is current now.
Best Value
What are the categories in NYT Connections #912?
The four groups are BEAR IN MIND, STRIPED ANIMALS, ASSOCIATED WITH RAINBOWS, and BEGINNING WITH NUMBER HOMOPHONES.
How does the purple group in Connections #912 work?
FIEVEL sounds like “five” at the beginning, FOREHEAD like “four,” TOUCAN like “two,” and WONDER like “one.”
The Bottom Line
The key to Connections #912 is recognizing that its groups use different kinds of relationships: synonyms for taking something into account, striped animals, rainbow associations and number-like word beginnings. The hardest categories are the broad rainbow group and the sound-based purple group.
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