What is the NYT Connections answer for August 27 (#1173)?

The four groups are ELECTRIC THINGS (ELECTRIC EEL, LIGHTNING, LIVE WIRE, PIKACHU); MOVED TO TEARS (CHOKED UP, EMOTIONAL, MISTY, OVERCOME); SHADES OF GRAY (ASH, DOVE, PEWTER, SLATE); MUSIC GENRE PLUS STARTING LETTER (BROCK, NEMO, SPUNK, WRAP).

Which Connections group is hardest today?

The purple group — "MUSIC GENRE PLUS STARTING LETTER" — 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.

Thursday, August 27, 2026#1173

NYT Connections Hints & Answer — Thursday, August 27

DailyWordHints Editorial August 27

ELECTRIC THINGS

Easiest

MOVED TO TEARS

Easy

SHADES OF GRAY

Tricky

MUSIC GENRE PLUS STARTING LETTER

Hardest

Today's NYT Connections groups are ELECTRIC THINGS (yellow), MOVED TO TEARS (green), SHADES OF GRAY (blue), MUSIC GENRE PLUS STARTING LETTER (purple).

PIKACHU

SPUNK

NEMO

DOVE

MISTY

SLATE

LIGHTNING

ASH

PEWTER

BROCK

EMOTIONAL

LIVE WIRE

OVERCOME

ELECTRIC EEL

WRAP

CHOKED UP

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 #1173, Thursday, August 27. 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 27 (#1173)?: The four groups are ELECTRIC THINGS (ELECTRIC EEL, LIGHTNING, LIVE WIRE, PIKACHU); MOVED TO TEARS (CHOKED UP, EMOTIONAL, MISTY, OVERCOME); SHADES OF GRAY (ASH, DOVE, PEWTER, SLATE); MUSIC GENRE PLUS STARTING LETTER (BROCK, NEMO, SPUNK, WRAP).
Which Connections group is hardest today?: The purple group — "MUSIC GENRE PLUS STARTING LETTER" — 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.