Today’s Connections puzzle (No. 837) lands at a moderate 3/5 difficulty, as rated on the official Connections Companion for this board. If you’d like to double-check individual clue reveals, they appear there one per category (for this puzzle: “BLUE,” “CONE,” “DEPARTED,” and “FICTIONAL BOXER”).

Open the official Companion page for No. 837

Spoiler-free category hints

If you want a nudge without seeing the groups or answers, here are light hints ordered from easiest (yellow) to hardest (purple):

  • Yellow: terms for left-wing politics
  • Green: ice cream desserts
  • Blue: films starring Matt Damon
  • Purple: they each have the same name

Full answers for Connections #837

Below is the complete solution. This table lists each color group, its category, and the four words that belong.

Color Category Words
Yellow Left-leaning, politically Blue, Left, Liberal, Progressive
Green Ice cream parlor orders Cone, Cup, Shake, Split
Blue Matt Damon movies (with “The”) Departed, Good Shepherd, Martian, Rainmaker
Purple Named “Apollo” Fictional Boxer, Greek/Roman God, Spacecraft, Theater

Why these groups fit

Left-leaning, politically (Yellow): All four terms can describe the political left. “Blue” commonly denotes Democratic politics in the U.S.; “Left,” “Liberal,” and “Progressive” are straightforward descriptors of left-leaning ideology.

Ice cream parlor orders (Green): Each is a standard order you might place at an ice cream counter: a “Cone” or a “Cup,” a “Shake,” or a banana “Split.”

Matt Damon movies with “The” (Blue): Each title is commonly used with the definite article: The Departed, The Good Shepherd, The Martian, The Rainmaker.

Named “Apollo” (Purple): These are four distinct things that share the same name. “Fictional Boxer” refers to Apollo Creed; “Greek/Roman God” is Apollo; “Spacecraft” points to NASA’s Apollo program; and “Theater” evokes the Apollo Theater.

Notes on difficulty and ordering

Connections groups are presented by difficulty from yellow (easiest) through green and blue to purple (hardest). On this board, the green set tends to pop once you spot the ice cream context; the purple set hinges on recognizing “Apollo” as a shared name across mythology, pop culture, aerospace, and venues. The blue set can click quickly if you catch the “with ‘The’” constraint on the film titles.

Recap

  • Yellow — Left-leaning, politically: Blue, Left, Liberal, Progressive
  • Green — Ice cream parlor orders: Cone, Cup, Shake, Split
  • Blue — Matt Damon movies (with “The”): Departed, Good Shepherd, Martian, Rainmaker
  • Purple — Named “Apollo”: Fictional Boxer, Greek/Roman God, Spacecraft, Theater

That’s today’s wall. If you’re maintaining a streak, the category sequencing (yellow to purple) is a reliable way to triage the grid: bank the obvious set, then work through the trickier overlaps. Tomorrow’s board will bring a fresh mix of misdirection and theme constraints.