‘Connections’ January 8: Answers and Hints for Puzzle #577

If today’s Connections puzzle has you stumped, you’ve come to the right place, as Newsweek has gathered some handy hints to guide you through.

After its debut in The New York Times in June 2023, Connections quickly built a large following. The puzzle challenges players to group words based on subtle links, combining logic with language skills. Today it ranks as the Times‘ second-most popular game, just after Wordle.

Connections developer and NYT puzzle editor Wyna Liu previously told Newsweek that the game’s popularity was “overwhelming and unexpected.”

“It’s exciting that something I care very deeply about is resonating with people,” she shared.

If you’re not familiar with Connections this article will share tips for sharpening your puzzle-solving abilities and provide hints for today’s challenge. Wednesday’s answers are included further down, so read with caution if you want to avoid them.

How to Play ‘Connections’

Connections tasks players with grouping 16 words into four categories based on association. For example, Tuesday’s game linked the words “A Capella,” “Barbershop,” “Doo-Wop” and “Madrigal” in the category “Vocal Music.”

Each of the four categories is labeled with a color, which also signifies their difficulty level. Yellow is the easiest category, followed by green, blue and purple. The puzzles are rarely straightforward, using homophones and wordplay, among other techniques, to keep players challenged.

Once you’ve decided on your four words, click the “Submit” button. If your submission is correct, the terms will flash in the category color and will be removed from the board. If they are incorrect, however, they will be gray in color and remain on the table.

If you are stuck, try selecting the “shuffle” button to move the words to a different place on the grid. Players have up to four chances to guess incorrectly before the game ends. There’s no time constraint, so there is no need to rush.