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Need help with NYT Connections #831, from Friday, September 19, 2025? Start with the graduated hints below; the full category labels and all 16 answers appear after a spoiler warning.
Hints for Connections #831
Each hint points toward one group without giving away its four words.
- Yellow: Four verbs for assessing or assigning a judgment to something.
- Green: Physical things a nervous person may do or show.
- Blue: Things that can “run” in ways people find annoying.
- Purple: Each word can follow “paper.” One word in the group is TOWEL.
Spoiler warning: answers below
The category names and complete word groupings for puzzle #831 follow.
Connections #831 answers
| Color | Category | Words |
|---|---|---|
| Yellow | EVALUATE | GRADE, RANK, RATE, SCORE |
| Green | EXHIBIT NERVOUSNESS | BLUSH, FIDGET, PACE, SWEAT |
| Blue | THINGS THAT CAN RUN, ANNOYINGLY | DYE, MASCARA, NOSE, STOCKINGS |
| Purple | PAPER ___ | CLIP, TIGER, TOWEL, TRAIL |
How the trickier connections work
Blue: “run” has several meanings
Dye can run, mascara can run, a nose can run, and stockings can run. The group connects these different uses of the same word.
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Purple: complete a phrase with “paper”
The four familiar phrases are paper clip, paper tiger, paper towel, and paper trail. CLIP was the word that prompted the TechRadar guide author to think of “paper”; the guide’s “Moderate” rating is that author’s personal assessment, not an official difficulty score. [TechRadar’s September 19 guide]
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