Wordle Connections Game

Sixteen words. Four secret groups. Spot what links them, tap your four, and see if you can finish before you run out of mistakes. It is free, it takes a few minutes, and a fresh puzzle is waiting every day.

Free to play
No sign-up
New puzzle daily
Works on any device

So, what exactly is Wordle Connections?

If you like crosswords but wish they were a little more playful, this one is for you. You get a grid of sixteen words that look unrelated at first glance. Hidden inside are four groups of four, and each group shares one idea: maybe they are all kinds of cheese, or they can all follow the word "night".

The fun comes from the overlap. Plenty of words could belong to two or three groups, so you have to weigh your options, test a theory and sometimes back out of it. There is no clock and no pressure, only a small pile of mistakes you can afford to make.

We built this page to be quick to load and easy on the eyes, whether you are squeezing in a puzzle on a coffee break or winding down at night.

The four colors

Yellow: the friendliest group. The link is usually easy to see.
Green: still approachable, but a bit less obvious.
Blue: needs some deeper word association.
Purple: the sneakiest one, often built on wordplay.

Unlimited play, no waiting

Most word games hand you a single puzzle and tell you to come back tomorrow. Here you get both: a puzzle of the day for everyone, plus unlimited extra rounds whenever you feel like playing more.

Unlimited puzzlesPress New Game after any round to get a fresh puzzle from the collection.
Unlimited retriesLost all four mistakes? Restart the same puzzle and try a new approach.
Free, foreverNo account, no lives, no daily limit and no timer.

How to play Wordle Connections

Three simple moves are all you need. You get four mistakes, and the puzzle ends when you find every group or run out.

Read all sixteen words
Take a slow first pass. Look at what each word means, how it sounds and what it could be paired with. Most words fit more than one idea, and that is the trap.
Spot a group of four
Find four words that clearly share a theme. If one word seems to fit five groups, put it aside and start with the group you feel surest about.
Select, submit, repeat
Tap your four words and press Submit. A correct guess reveals the group. A wrong guess costs a mistake, so use Deselect and rethink before you try again.

The kinds of connections you will meet

No two puzzles are the same, but the same handful of tricks keeps coming back. Learn to recognize them and the grid starts to open up.

Words that follow a wordOWL, SHIFT, FALL and CLUB can all follow “night”.
Words that come before a wordFOOT, BASKET, SNOW and EYE all go before “ball”.
Sound-alikesBEE, SEA, TEA and WHY sound like the letters B, C, T and Y.
AnagramsLISTEN, SILENT, ENLIST and TINSEL are made from the same letters.
Hidden wordsEach word hides a smaller one: ARM in CHARM, CAT in SCATTER.
Pop culture and triviaCharacters, bands or brands that belong together even when the words look random.

Four tips to solve it faster

Hunt for red herringsPuzzle makers love a word that fits two groups. Count how many candidates each theme has. A theme with five contenders means one of them belongs elsewhere.
Begin with the safest groupSolving a certain group first removes four words and shrinks the board, which makes the remaining themes much easier to see.
Think about wordplayLook for hidden words, homophones, words that go before or after a common term, or anagrams. Purple groups lean on this a lot.
Say the words out loudHearing a word can reveal a pun or rhyme that staring at the letters never will. A short pause and a fresh look often does the trick.

Better with company

Grouping puzzles are more fun when someone else is staring at the same sixteen words. Press New Game, copy the link and drop it in a chat with a friend or the family: you will both get the identical puzzle, so you can compare who spotted the purple group first and who burned through their mistakes.

Some people play over breakfast, others use a round as a short break between tasks. A game usually takes a few minutes, and there is no timer, so you can leave the tab open and come back to it when inspiration strikes.

If you enjoy this style of puzzle, have a look at the other word and number games further down the page.

Frequently asked questions

What is Wordle Connections?

Wordle Connections is a free word puzzle where you sort sixteen words into four groups of four. Every group shares a hidden link, such as types of trees, words that can follow "fire", or famous Johns. It plays in the browser, so there is nothing to install.

How do I play?

Tap four words you think belong together and press Submit. If you are right, the group is revealed and locked in. If not, you lose one of your four mistakes. Find all four groups and you win.

What do the four colors mean?

Yellow is the most straightforward group, green is a little trickier, blue takes real thought, and purple is the sneakiest, usually built on wordplay or an unusual twist. Colors only show up once you solve a group.

How many mistakes can I make?

You can make four mistakes. The counter under the board shows how many are left. When it reaches zero the round ends and you can restart the same puzzle or start a new one.

What does unlimited play mean?

There is no daily cap. Finish a puzzle, press New Game and you get another one straight away, as many times as you like. You can also restart the same puzzle after a loss. No lives, no waiting, no account.

Is there a new puzzle every day?

Yes. Open the site and you get the puzzle of the day. Want more? Press New Game for a different puzzle from the collection, as often as you like.

Can I play on my phone or tablet?

Absolutely. The board resizes to fit any screen, and there is a dark mode for late-night sessions. Use the moon icon at the top of the page to switch.

Can I share a puzzle with a friend?

Yes. After you press New Game the address bar contains that puzzle's ID, so the Copy link button sends your friend the exact same puzzle. On the home page the link simply opens the puzzle of the day.

Is Wordle Connections the same as the New York Times game?

No. We are an independent fan site inspired by the Connections format that The New York Times launched in June 2023. We are not affiliated with or endorsed by The New York Times.

What should I do if I get stuck?

Step away from the words you are sure about and look at the leftovers. Say them out loud, think of phrases they could complete, and check whether one word is doing double duty. Deselect clears your picks so you can try a fresh idea without spending a mistake.

Why do some words seem to fit more than one group?

That is the whole design. Puzzle makers add decoys that look like they belong to another theme. A good trick is to find the theme with exactly four candidates, because that is usually the real group.

When does the daily puzzle change?

The puzzle of the day switches at midnight in your own time zone, so a new one is waiting each morning.

Do I need an account, and does it cost anything?

No account and no payment. The game is free to play. The site is supported by advertising, which is why you may see a few promotional blocks around the puzzle.