Below you’ll find gentle nudges, the complete word list, and the fully solved groups for NYT Connections game #839 (Saturday, September 27, 2025). Stop at the hints if you want to preserve the solve; the answers appear in a separate section with a spoiler warning.

NYT Connections (Sep 27, 2025, game #839) word list

  • FLIPPER
  • FRITTER
  • THROW
  • KETTLE
  • TENDER
  • WING
  • TRIFLE
  • POPPER
  • ARM
  • WARM
  • MICROWAVE
  • FIDDLE
  • STOVETOP
  • KIND
  • FIN
  • SWEET

Category hints for today (no spoilers)

  • Yellow: Affectionate descriptors.
  • Green: Body attachments or limbs.
  • Blue: Ways to make a specific snack at home.
  • Purple: Verbs that pair with “away” to mean “waste” or “squander.”

Tip: If two words feel like a pair in more than one theme (for example, food vs. feeling), scan for a tighter connection first—synonyms usually resolve before trickier idioms.

Full groups and answers (spoilers)

Group Category Words
Yellow Loving KIND, SWEET, TENDER, WARM
Green Appendages ARM, FIN, FLIPPER, WING
Blue Popcorn-making methods KETTLE, MICROWAVE, POPPER, STOVETOP
Purple Squander, with “away” FIDDLE, FRITTER, THROW, TRIFLE

Why these sets are correct

  • Loving: KIND, SWEET, TENDER, and WARM are all common adjectives for affectionate behavior or tone.
  • Appendages: ARM, FIN, FLIPPER, and WING are protruding body parts across humans, fish/mammals, and birds.
  • Popcorn-making methods: KETTLE, MICROWAVE, POPPER, and STOVETOP are standard ways to pop kernels.
  • Squander with “away”: FIDDLE, FRITTER, THROW, and TRIFLE each form idioms with “away” meaning to waste time, money, or chances.

Common decoy: TENDER and WING may suggest food, but each belongs to different themes here—TENDER pairs with other affectionate terms; WING goes with appendages.

Play today’s puzzle

You can play NYT Connections in a browser on the official page at nytimes.com/games/connections. The puzzle updates daily at midnight in your time zone.

If you’re tracking your streak, consider tackling the affectionate adjectives first, then the clear anatomical group. Leave the idiomatic “away” verbs for last, since those are easiest to confirm once other sets are removed.