Need help with NYT Connections #862 for Monday, October 20, 2025? The puzzle’s 16 tiles hide four groups involving afflictions, constellations, chemical symbols, and words that become new terms when followed by -corn.
Hints appear first, followed by the full answers and an explanation of the traps—including the tempting K, POP, DEMON, HUNTER combination.
NYT Connections #862 hints for October 20
Use these clues if you want to solve the grid without seeing every answer immediately:
| Color | Hint |
|---|---|
| 🟨 Yellow | A scourge, hardship, or something that bothers you |
| 🟩 Green | Written in the stars |
| 🟦 Blue | Chemical elements |
| 🟪 Purple | Add a word that rhymes with “torn”; prefixes before a word meaning maize |
The 16 tiles
K, POP, DEMON, HUNTER, COMPLEX, AS, A, CENTAUR, BE, BIG BEAR, BUGBEAR, UNI, I, HANG-UP, LYRE, CAPRI
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NYT Connections answers for October 20, 2025
🟨 Yellow: AFFLICTION
BUGBEAR, COMPLEX, DEMON, HANG-UP
Each word can describe a persistent problem, worry, weakness, or source of irritation. A bugbear is an annoyance or source of fear; a complex can be a psychological difficulty; a demon may represent a troubling inner struggle; and a hang-up is an inhibition or problem.
🟩 Green: REPRESENTED BY CONSTELLATIONS
BIG BEAR, CENTAUR, HUNTER, LYRE
These refer to figures represented in the night sky. Big Bear corresponds to Ursa Major, the Centaur to Centaurus, the Hunter to Orion, and the Lyre to Lyra. The group is phrased broadly rather than using the formal constellation names, which makes the entries less immediately obvious.
Rank #2
🟦 Blue: PERIODIC TABLE SYMBOLS
AS, BE, I, K
These short entries are chemical symbols when capitalization is restored:
| Tile | Element | Atomic number |
|---|---|---|
| As | Arsenic | 33 |
| Be | Beryllium | 4 |
| I | Iodine | 53 |
| K | Potassium | 19 |
The symbols are presented as ordinary-looking letter combinations, so AS and BE can easily distract from the chemistry connection.
The Tool Desk
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A, CAPRI, POP, UNI
Add each tile before corn to form a word:
- A + corn = acorn
- Capri + corn = Capricorn
- Pop + corn = popcorn
- Uni + corn = unicorn
This is the most construction-based group in the puzzle. Capricorn also reinforces the broader stars-and-constellations material, making CAPRI especially easy to misplace before the purple answer is clear.
Why this grid is tricky
The strongest red herring is K, POP, DEMON, HUNTER. Together they suggest KPop Demon Hunters, but that apparent phrase is not a valid category. K belongs with the element symbols, POP completes popcorn, and HUNTER belongs with the constellation figures. Only DEMON stays in the affliction group.
There is also overlap between the green and purple ideas. Capricorn is connected with astrology, but CAPRI is needed for the word-building group. Likewise, HUNTER sounds like a general occupation until it is read as “the Hunter,” a familiar description of Orion.
Answer check
| Group | Tiles |
|---|---|
| Affliction | BUGBEAR, COMPLEX, DEMON, HANG-UP |
| Represented by constellations | BIG BEAR, CENTAUR, HUNTER, LYRE |
| Periodic table symbols | AS, BE, I, K |
| ___CORN | A, CAPRI, POP, UNI |
Connections refreshes at midnight in your local time zone, so the puzzle labeled “today” can vary depending on where you are. For the U.S. edition covered here, the date is Monday, October 20, 2025, and the correct puzzle number is #862. Puzzle #861 was the Sunday, October 19 edition.
FAQ
What is the NYT Connections answer for Monday, October 20, 2025?
The four groups are AFFLICTION; REPRESENTED BY CONSTELLATIONS; PERIODIC TABLE SYMBOLS; and ___CORN.
What are the yellow answers in Connections #862?
The yellow AFFLICTION group is BUGBEAR, COMPLEX, DEMON, and HANG-UP.
What are the blue chemical symbols in Connections #862?
The blue group is AS, BE, I, and K: arsenic, beryllium, iodine, and potassium.
Why do A, CAPRI, POP, and UNI go together?
They can each be placed before CORN to make ACORN, CAPRICORN, POPCORN, and UNICORN.
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The Bottom Line
The October 20, 2025, NYT Connections solution is #862: BUGBEAR, COMPLEX, DEMON, HANG-UP; BIG BEAR, CENTAUR, HUNTER, LYRE; AS, BE, I, K; and A, CAPRI, POP, UNI.
Quick Recap
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