Jones 
If you need some extra energy to get through today’s Connections puzzle, you came to the right place. We may not have caffeine, but we do have what you need to focus in on the last few answers and solve the puzzle. Whether you want a few clues or just straight-up spoilers, we have what it takes to get you that streak bonus.
Sometimes, things in our lives are better in bite-sized varieties. Mini Reese’s, mini M&M’s, mini cows, and, of course, the Mini Crossword from the NYT. Like its bigger brother, the mini-sized version has all the complexity and cultural references you have come to expect in an itty, bitty living space. This makes it the perfect on-the-go-sized puzzle that does not overstay its welcome.
Today’s Connections Category Hints
SEPTEMBER 13 #459
A cow jumping over the moon does seem like a tall task, and Connections sometimes also asks you to make logical leaps that seem out of this world. Luckily, those logical leaps can become a lot smaller with a few hints like these:
- One category is like a battery
- One category is about going backwards and forwards the same way
- One category is about a popular folktale
- One category is about varieties of the same object
Getting all the way over the moon is a different story, and we wouldn’t want you to get stuck there, so to nudge you onto the other side, we have all the category names listed out to ensure success:
 |
VITALITY |
 |
PALINDROMES FEATURING “E” |
 |
FEATURED IN “JACK AND THE BEANSTALK” |
 |
CAR MODELS |
Today’s Connections Answers
SEPTEMBER 13 #459
Yellow Answers: Revealed & Explained
| VITALITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| ENERGY | JUICE | LIFE | ZIP |
This one felt quite difficult today due to the number of words you had to narrow down to be in this category. All four of these certainly make sense, but distinguishing them from words like LEVEL, PEP, and VOLT could be frustrating. ZIP and PEP to me, in particular, are extraordinarily similar with the same energetic connotations and, without knowing what the green category was supposed to be, it was very easy to mess this one up.
Green Answers: Revealed & Explained
| PALINDROMES FEATURING “E” | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| LEVEL | PEP | REFER | TENET |
This category feels like it should be more blue or purple than it is green, simply because to me it takes more effort to recognize spelling as a connection than it does a different model of car. The puzzle itself seems a bit backward in a lot of ways today because of those two things.
However, if you do figure it out, that does seem to be the best way to figure out that LEVEL and PEP belong here and not in the other category.
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Blue Answers: Revealed & Explained
| FEATURED IN “JACK AND THE BEANSTALK” | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| BEANS | COW | GIANT | JACK |
My passion for fairy tales strikes again, as this category felt way more obvious and easier today to me than any of the others. I think this has a lot to do with my knowledge of the subject matter, but it also likely has to do with the fact that none of the energy-esque words are in this category. They are all very different and do not easily fit into any of the other categories.
Purple Answers: Revealed & Explained
| CAR MODELS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| BEETLE | CIVIC | FOCUS | VOLT |
“Car models” as a category does not seem to fit closely with other purple categories, especially recently. This feels like it should be easier and the palindromes harder. Regardless, VOLT could still be mistaken as belonging elsewhere, and BEETLE will look weird at first to anyone who is not extremely familiar with one. However, this still feels much easier than asking me to look at the word backward and forward before I click on it.
Other Games Like Connections
If you like things that change a lot, you should consider looking up The Password Game, as it constantly changes to make you work harder to solve the puzzle:
| Game Name | How To Play | Is It Free To Play? |
|---|---|---|
| Wordle (NYT) | Solve a random five-letter word by using color clues. Every Wordle answer can be found in our daily updated list. | Yes |
| Hello Wordl | Very similar to Wordle, where players change the number of letters in the word. | Yes |
| The Password Game | Create a password in this ever-changing, not-so-simple game. You can find some helpful tips in our Password Game guide. | Yes |
| Worldle | Name a country based only on its silhouette, and a few geographical hints. |
Yes |
