Spoiler warning: The first clues below reveal only the categories. A stronger hint follows, and the complete answers for Connections #228 are in a separate section farther down.
This is the puzzle published on Thursday, January 25, 2024—not a current daily puzzle. Choose the level of help you want before scrolling.
Category hints for Connections #228
Try grouping the words using these category-level clues before looking at the stronger hints or answer key.
- Yellow: Words that describe something currently popular.
- Green: Terms associated with a visual representation or symbol.
- Blue: Verbs for imposing a financial penalty.
- Purple: Each answer begins with a word for a body part.
Need a stronger hint?
The groups point to buzzwords, graphical symbols, financial penalties, and four words that start with HAND, HIP, LEG, or LIP. The purple group is a word-start trick: focus on the body-part name at the beginning rather than the full word’s ordinary meaning.
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Connections #228 answers
Stop here if you still want to solve the puzzle yourself. The complete groupings are below.
| Color | Category | Words |
|---|---|---|
| Yellow | Trending terms | BIG, HOT, IN, POPULAR |
| Green | Pictograph | CHARACTER, GLYPH, ICON, SYMBOL |
| Blue | Impose, as a penalty | ASSESS, CHARGE, FINE, LEVY |
| Purple | Words beginning with body parts | HANDSOME, HIPPO, LEGEND, LIPID |
In the purple set, HAND begins HANDSOME, HIP begins HIPPO, LEG begins LEGEND, and LIP begins LIPID. The completed words can initially pull attention toward their usual meanings; the shared connection is their opening body-part name.
Rank #2
How the puzzle works
Secondary guides describe Connections as a daily puzzle in which players select four words that share a thread and submit the group, with up to four mistakes allowed and a reset at local midnight. These mechanics are reported by those guides, not independently verified here against an official rules page. For the original puzzle, use the NYT Games Connections page.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Difficulty note
Tom’s Guide reported a Connections Companion rating of 2.8 out of 5 for puzzle #228. The guide does not provide the Companion’s methodology, so treat that figure as a reported rating rather than an independently verified measurement.
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