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NYT Connections puzzle #857 was published Wednesday, October 15, 2025. The groups are types of pools, NATO phonetic-alphabet codewords, Ford models, and phrases ending in “SEAL.” Use the hints below in stages, or jump to the full solution if you want every answer immediately.
Quick facts
- Date: Wednesday, October 15, 2025
- Game: NYT Connections #857
- Word bank: KIDNEY, GOLF, GREAT, BRONCO, PINTO, VACUUM, KIDDIE, LIMA, NAVY, OLYMPIC, ELEPHANT, FIESTA, INFINITY, BRAVO, MUSTANG, DELTA
Hints, from subtle to obvious
Broad category hints
- One group can follow the word “pool.”
- One group contains words used for letters in an international spelling alphabet.
- One group consists entirely of vehicles from the same manufacturer.
- For the final group, put the words before “SEAL.”
One representative word from each group
- INFINITY points to the pool group.
- BRAVO points to the NATO codewords.
- BRONCO points to the Ford models.
- ELEPHANT points to the “___ SEAL” group.
Category names
- TYPES OF POOLS
- IN THE NATO PHONETIC ALPHABET
- FORD MODELS
- ___ SEAL
Full answers for Connections #857
| Color | Category | Words | How they fit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yellow | TYPES OF POOLS | INFINITY, KIDDIE, KIDNEY, OLYMPIC | Infinity pool, kiddie pool, kidney pool, and Olympic pool. |
| Green | IN THE NATO PHONETIC ALPHABET | BRAVO, DELTA, GOLF, LIMA | These are the codewords for B, D, G, and L. |
| Blue | FORD MODELS | BRONCO, FIESTA, MUSTANG, PINTO | Each is a Ford vehicle model. |
| Purple | ___ SEAL | ELEPHANT, GREAT, NAVY, VACUUM | Elephant seal, Great Seal, Navy SEAL, and vacuum seal. |
The puzzle’s main red herring
KIDNEY, LIMA, NAVY, and PINTO can all suggest types of beans, making a convincing but incorrect set. Connections requires each word to be used once in the intended categories: KIDNEY belongs with pools, LIMA is a NATO codeword, NAVY completes “Navy SEAL,” and PINTO is a Ford model.
There is also a smaller distraction between BRAVO and GREAT: both can express approval. In the grid, however, BRAVO belongs to the NATO alphabet while GREAT forms “Great Seal.”
How to check a difficult Connections group
- Test whether the same relationship works naturally for all four words, not just two or three.
- Reserve words that have several meanings until another category becomes certain.
- After proposing a group, verify that every remaining word can still form three complete groups.
- For this grid, the bean idea fails that final check because its four apparent members are needed elsewhere.
Where to play or revisit the puzzle
NYT Games is the place to play Connections. An opened guide reports that eligible subscribers can use the game archive to revisit earlier puzzles; access rules and subscription terms can change, so check the current NYT Games interface for your account.
Quick Recap
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