Spoiler warning: This page gives progressively stronger hints and then the complete answers for NYT Connections #707, the puzzle published on Sunday, May 18, 2025.
Spoiler warning: The complete solutions to NYT Connections game #707 appear below. This is the puzzle from Sunday, May 18, 2025—not the separate puzzle from Monday, May 18, 2026.
Hints for Connections #707
Connections asks you to divide 16 words into four groups of four. Each group has a shared connection, but several words are designed to fit more than one possible category.
Yellow hint
Things a student might complete for school or training.
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Green hint
Words you might hear when a guess is getting close.
Blue hint
Words that can describe someone willing to go along with something.
Purple hint
Different meanings or uses of the letter A.
Stronger clues
- Yellow: These can all refer to academic work, practice, or instruction.
- Green: Together, these phrases sound like encouragement during a guessing game.
- Blue: Each word can describe a person who is receptive, adaptable, or willing.
- Purple: One entry relates to mathematics, one to a sports team, one to a grade, and one to the indefinite article.
Connections answers for Sunday, May 18
| Category | Answers |
|---|---|
| Tasks for a student | ASSIGNMENT, DRILL, EXERCISE, LESSON |
| Encouraging responses in a guessing game | ALMOST, CLOSE, NOT QUITE, WARM |
| Up for anything | EASY, FLEXIBLE, GAME, OPEN |
| What “A” might mean | AREA, ATHLETIC, EXCELLENT, ONE |
Yellow: Tasks for a student
ASSIGNMENT, DRILL, EXERCISE, LESSON
An assignment is work given to a student, while a lesson is a unit of instruction. An exercise can be a practice activity, and a drill can mean repeated practice designed to build skill.
DRILL and EXERCISE are the main traps here. Both can suggest physical training, but they also belong naturally with schoolwork and structured practice.
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ALMOST, CLOSE, NOT QUITE, WARM
These are all ways to indicate that someone is near the intended answer. A guess can be almost right, close, or not quite correct. Warm comes from the familiar “hot and cold” convention: a warm guess is moving in the right direction.
The four words can initially look like general descriptions of proximity. Their more specific connection is the kind of feedback a player might receive while trying to identify an answer.
Blue: Up for anything
EASY, FLEXIBLE, GAME, OPEN
Each word can describe someone willing to accept a suggestion or try something new. Someone may be easy to work with, flexible about plans, game for an activity, or open to an idea.
This group is difficult because the words also form or suggest other familiar combinations. For example, open and close can seem related as opposites, while warm and open may bring to mind “warm up” or “open up.” Looking for the phrase “up for anything” helps reveal the intended sense of all four words.
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AREA, ATHLETIC, EXCELLENT, ONE
This is the most ambiguous group in the puzzle. The four words do not function as ordinary synonyms. Instead, each points to a different meaning, convention, or association involving the letter A:
- AREA: In mathematics, A is commonly used as the symbol for area.
- ATHLETIC: The Oakland Athletics are commonly known as the A’s, so an individual player can be associated with an A or the Athletics.
- EXCELLENT: An A is a top grade in many grading systems and can signify excellent work.
- ONE: The lowercase article a can mean one, as in “a book” or “one book.”
Because these connections use different kinds of wordplay, the purple category is best approached after the other three groups have been removed. This explanation is the natural solving rationale for the category title, rather than a claim that all four entries are direct synonyms of A.
The full board
The 16 words in the May 18, 2025 puzzle were:
ALMOST, ATHLETIC, OPEN, CLOSE, WARM, FLEXIBLE, EXCELLENT, EXERCISE, AREA, DRILL, ONE, GAME, EASY, ASSIGNMENT, NOT QUITE, LESSON.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How the puzzle’s traps work
The board uses several overlapping ideas to delay an immediate solve:
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- EXERCISE and DRILL can suggest physical training, although they belong with student tasks.
- ALMOST, CLOSE, NOT QUITE, and WARM all signal nearness, but the intended setting is feedback during a guessing game.
- EASY, FLEXIBLE, GAME, and OPEN describe a person who is willing or receptive, rather than forming a literal set of opposites or related physical actions.
- The purple group depends on four different associations with A, making it the least conventional category and a strong candidate for solving by elimination.
After solving this archived game, you can play more Connections puzzles or browse other available puzzles through NYT Games, subject to the publisher’s current access terms.
Frequently Asked Questions
What was the Connections number for May 18, 2025?
The puzzle was Connections game #707, published on Sunday, May 18, 2025.
Why were AREA, ATHLETIC, EXCELLENT, and ONE grouped together?
The purple group was AREA, ATHLETIC, EXCELLENT, and ONE. Each points to a different meaning or association involving the letter A: area in mathematics, the Athletics or A’s, an A grade, and the article “a” meaning one.
What was the yellow category in Connections #707?
The four yellow answers were ASSIGNMENT, DRILL, EXERCISE, and LESSON.
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The Bottom Line
The May 18, 2025 Connections puzzle was game #707. Its groups were student tasks, guessing-game encouragement, words meaning “up for anything,” and four different associations with the letter A.
Quick Recap
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