Need a nudge before the reveal? This spoiler-aware guide gives progressive hints for New York Times Connections puzzle #1,023, dated Monday, March 30, 2026, followed by the four category answers and their words.
Hints for Connections #1,023
Connections asks players to sort 16 words into four groups of four. The hints below move from broad category types to more specific clues; stop when you have enough to solve the board.
First hint: group types
- Yellow: similar adjectives.
- Green: similar verbs.
- Blue: related nouns.
- Purple: wordplay.
Stronger hints
- Yellow: These describe something that is not the real thing.
- Green: Think about what a kid might do with LEGO pieces.
- Blue: You might see these names near airports.
- Purple: Consider snack flavors such as baked, barbecue, or salt and vinegar.
Connections answers for March 30, 2026
Spoilers below. The two same-day answer guides from Lifehacker and Yahoo Tech agree on the puzzle number, categories, and word sets. No official New York Times archive page for this historic puzzle was identified, so the answer set is corroborated by those secondary reports.
| Color | Category | Words | How the connection works |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yellow | IMITATION | DUMMY, ERSATZ, FAUX, MOCK | Each word can describe something made to imitate the real thing. ERSATZ often refers to an inferior substitute. |
| Green | PLAY AROUND (WITH) | FUTZ, MESS, TINKER, TOY | Each can mean to handle or experiment with something casually; TOY is used as a verb. |
| Blue | CAR RENTAL COMPANIES | AVIS, BUDGET, DOLLAR, HERTZ | These are names of car rental companies. |
| Purple | SNACK BRANDS PLUS STARTING LETTER | FRITZ, PLAYS, TRUFFLES, YUTZ | Each begins with an extra letter before a snack brand: Ritz, Lays, Ruffles, or Utz. |
Why the purple group is tricky
The purple set turns familiar snack names into slightly altered words by adding an initial letter: F + Ritz becomes FRITZ, P + Lays becomes PLAYS, T + Ruffles becomes TRUFFLES, and Y + Utz becomes YUTZ. PLAYS can look like an ordinary word on its own, which makes spotting the added P especially easy to miss.
#1 Best Overall
How the puzzle plays
Yahoo Tech describes the board as 16 words arranged into four groups of four and says players have four mistakes before the answers are revealed. It reports that the game is available through the New York Times website or app. These gameplay details come from that secondary guide; current official rules and access terms are not established here.
Quick Recap
Rank #2
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
