What is the NYT Connections answer for August 17 (#1163)?

The four groups are VIDEO CALL PLATFORMS (HUDDLE, MEET, TEAMS, ZOOM); SPREADSHEET FEATURES (FORMULA, FUNCTION, MACRO, SCRIPT); FIRST NAMES OF COUNTRY MUSIC LEGENDS (DOLLY, JOHNNY, PATSY, WILLIE); STARTING WITH PETS (BIRDIE, CATTLE, DOGIE, FISHEYE).

Which Connections group is hardest today?

The purple group — "STARTING WITH PETS" — is the trickiest, as it usually relies on wordplay or a hidden connection rather than a straightforward category.

What do the Connections colors mean?

Yellow is the easiest group, then green, then blue, and purple is the hardest — often involving wordplay or a hidden twist.

Monday, August 17, 2026#1163

NYT Connections Hints & Answer — Monday, August 17

DailyWordHints Editorial August 17

VIDEO CALL PLATFORMS

Easiest

SPREADSHEET FEATURES

Easy

FIRST NAMES OF COUNTRY MUSIC LEGENDS

Tricky

STARTING WITH PETS

Hardest

Today's NYT Connections groups are VIDEO CALL PLATFORMS (yellow), SPREADSHEET FEATURES (green), FIRST NAMES OF COUNTRY MUSIC LEGENDS (blue), STARTING WITH PETS (purple).

MACRO

MEET

DOLLY

DOGIE

ZOOM

CATTLE

FISHEYE

SCRIPT

WILLIE

BIRDIE

PATSY

FUNCTION

HUDDLE

FORMULA

JOHNNY

TEAMS

Hints by group

yellowEasiest

greenEasy

blueTricky

purpleHardest

Full answers below

Today’s answers

yellowEasiest

greenEasy

blueTricky

purpleHardest

See all past Connections puzzles →

Today's Connections hints (no answers yet)

Here are spoiler-free nudges for NYT Connections #1163, Monday, August 17. Reveal one color at a time and work from the easiest group (yellow) to the trickiest (purple).

How to use these hints

Each clue is written so it never names any of the sixteen words — it just points you in the right direction. Open the full answer only once you're truly stuck.

Strategy for solving today's grid

Lock in the group you're most confident about first to shrink the board, but resist the obvious four-of-a-kind — the puzzle almost always plants a word that fits two themes. Save the purple group for last; it usually hides the wordplay twist.

Frequently asked questions

What is the NYT Connections answer for August 17 (#1163)?: The four groups are VIDEO CALL PLATFORMS (HUDDLE, MEET, TEAMS, ZOOM); SPREADSHEET FEATURES (FORMULA, FUNCTION, MACRO, SCRIPT); FIRST NAMES OF COUNTRY MUSIC LEGENDS (DOLLY, JOHNNY, PATSY, WILLIE); STARTING WITH PETS (BIRDIE, CATTLE, DOGIE, FISHEYE).
Which Connections group is hardest today?: The purple group — "STARTING WITH PETS" — is the trickiest, as it usually relies on wordplay or a hidden connection rather than a straightforward category.
What do the Connections colors mean?: Yellow is the easiest group, then green, then blue, and purple is the hardest — often involving wordplay or a hidden twist.