NYT Connections #685, released Saturday, April 26, 2025, groups the 16 words into terms for describing color, valley synonyms, people named Bob, and anagrams of colors. If you are still solving, use the hints below in order. The complete groups and explanations follow the spoiler warning.
This is the 2025 puzzle numbered #685—not the different April 26 puzzle numbered #1050 from 2026.
How NYT Connections works
Connections presents 16 words. Your task is to divide them into four groups of four, with each group sharing a common connection. The New York Times uses four difficulty colors: yellow is generally the most accessible, followed by green, blue, and purple. The game is intentionally built around overlaps and misleading associations, so a word that appears to fit one group may belong elsewhere. The daily puzzle is released at midnight in the player’s local time zone, according to the NYT Games Help Center.
The 16 words in Connections #685
Here is the complete grid:
GLEN GARY ROSS COLOR HOPE HOLLOW SHADE LUBE DELL DOLE GENRE TONE HUE DRE DALE MARLEY
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Hints for April 26, 2025
Try these progressively more revealing clues before looking at the answers.
- Yellow: Four words describe or distinguish a color.
- Green: Four words can mean a valley or a low-lying depression. As an extra nudge, think “San Fernando ___.”
- Blue: Four entries are associated with people named Bob. Think of the given name Robert.
- Purple: Four words become colors when their letters are rearranged.
Spoiler warning: the Connections #685 answers
Stop here if you want to keep solving without seeing the solution.
Yellow: TINT
COLOR, HUE, SHADE, TONE
These are all words used to describe, identify, or distinguish a color. COLOR is the most obvious-looking entry, which can make the group seem too easy or encourage you to search for a different connection. The more precise terms—HUE, SHADE, and TONE—complete the set.
Green: VALLEY
DALE, DELL, GLEN, HOLLOW
A dale, dell, and glen can each describe a valley or valley-like low area. A hollow is also a small valley or depression, especially in geographical names. “San Fernando ___” points toward Valley.
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The words GLEN and ROSS may also suggest the phrase Glengarry Glen Ross. That apparent cultural connection is one of the puzzle’s traps: GLEN belongs with the landscape terms, not with ROSS.
Blue: BOBS
DOLE, HOPE, MARLEY, ROSS
Each word refers to a well-known person whose first name is Bob:
- Bob Dole, the American politician
- Bob Hope, the comedian and entertainer
- Bob Marley, the Jamaican singer and songwriter
- Bob Ross, the painter and television host
The category is not referring to the verb “bobs”; “Bobs” means people named Bob. The clue “Think Robert” works because Bob is commonly used as a short form of Robert.
Purple: COLOR ANAGRAMS
DRE, GARY, GENRE, LUBE
Rearrange the letters in each entry to get a color:
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| Grid word | Rearranged color |
|---|---|
| DRE | RED |
| GARY | GRAY |
| GENRE | GREEN |
| LUBE | BLUE |
This is the most indirect group. It echoes the yellow category’s color vocabulary while using wordplay rather than direct definitions. Once the first three groups are removed, the four anagrammed color names become clear.
Why this puzzle can be deceptive
The grid contains several overlapping signals. COLOR, HUE, SHADE, and TONE form a straightforward descriptive set, but the presence of four hidden color anagrams makes the color theme appear larger than it really is. The puzzle also places GLEN and ROSS together, inviting the phrase Glengarry Glen Ross even though they belong to separate groups.
A practical solving route is to start with the direct color-description group, then remove the valley synonyms. Look for the four Bobs next. The remaining words reveal the purple group by elimination and anagramming.
Contemporary answer guides broadly agreed on this word list and solution. Their difficulty assessments were subjective—for example, one guide described the puzzle as moderate, while another reported a 3.3/5 companion rating. Those are publisher or companion-guide judgments, not an official New York Times difficulty score.
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Want more puzzles away from the screen?
If you enjoyed the group-finding and wordplay in #685, the official Connections puzzle book collects more than 100 puzzles in hardcover form. It is an optional screen-free extension for people who want additional Connections-style challenges; it is not needed to solve the daily puzzle, and availability and retail pricing can vary.
Answer summary
| Color | Category | Answers |
|---|---|---|
| Yellow | TINT | COLOR, HUE, SHADE, TONE |
| Green | VALLEY | DALE, DELL, GLEN, HOLLOW |
| Blue | BOBS | DOLE, HOPE, MARLEY, ROSS |
| Purple | COLOR ANAGRAMS | DRE, GARY, GENRE, LUBE |
For reference, the exact puzzle date is April 26, 2025. Searching for “April 26 Connections” without the year can produce the separate puzzle #1050 from April 26, 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the answers to NYT Connections #685?
The groups are TINT—COLOR, HUE, SHADE, TONE; VALLEY—DALE, DELL, GLEN, HOLLOW; BOBS—DOLE, HOPE, MARLEY, ROSS; and COLOR ANAGRAMS—DRE, GARY, GENRE, LUBE.
What do DRE, GARY, GENRE, and LUBE have in common?
They are anagrams of colors: DRE becomes RED, GARY becomes GRAY, GENRE becomes GREEN, and LUBE becomes BLUE.
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Why is Ross in the Bobs group?
ROSS refers to Bob Ross, the painter and television host. The other entries are Bob Dole, Bob Hope, and Bob Marley.
Is this the April 26, 2026 Connections puzzle?
No. This article covers Saturday, April 26, 2025, puzzle #685. April 26, 2026 had a different puzzle, numbered #1050.
The Bottom Line
NYT Connections #685: TINT, VALLEY, BOBS, and COLOR ANAGRAMS. The key breakthrough is recognizing that DRE, GARY, GENRE, and LUBE rearrange to RED, GRAY, GREEN, and BLUE.
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