Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for Oct. 27, #869

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Today’s NYT Connections puzzle has a fun mix of topics today. They’re not too tough but if you need help you’re in the right place. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.
The Times now has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including the number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.
Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time
Hints for today’s Connections groups
Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.
Yellow group hint: Reach out from a center point.
Green group hint: Barely.
Blue group hint: Decorative eats in a drink.
Purple group hint: Not two or three, but …
Answers for today’s Connections groups
Yellow group: Emanate.
Green group: In the slightest.
Blue group: Cocktail garnishes.
Purple group: ____ four.
Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words
What are today’s Connections answers?
The completed NYT Connections puzzle for Oct. 27, 2025.
The yellow words in today’s Connections
The theme is emanate. The four answers are branch, fan, radiate and spread.
The green words in today’s Connections
The theme is in the slightest. The four answers are just, merely, only and simply.
The blue words in today’s Connections
The theme is cocktail garnishes. The four answers are cherry, mint, olive and twist.
The purple words in today’s Connections
The theme is ____ four. The four answers are connect, fab, fantastic and petit.
Quick tips for Connections
#1: Say the clue words out loud, pausing before and after each. That helps you hear the words in the context of a phrase. The Connections editors love to group words together that are used in similar phrasing, like ____ Up.
#2: Don’t go for the obvious grouping. These editors are smart. Once, they offered SPONGE, BOB, SQUARE and PANTS in the same puzzle. None of those words were in the same category. If you like, hit the “shuffle” button to give yourself a different perspective on the words.
#3: Break down any compound words and look for similarities. “Rushmore” was once in a puzzle where the connection was that each word started with the name of a rock band.




