Connections hint for October 16, 2026
The puzzle for Friday, October 16, 2026. Every hint is hidden until you open it, so take only the nudge you need.
The 16 words, in starting order
- HUNGARY
- HUNGRY
- HIPPO
- CHICKEN
- CHIP
- CHAD
- COOLIDGE
- CYRUS
- SPAN
- MARK
- LAOS
- NICK
- PARAGUAY
- SMARTIES
- BULGARI
- SCRATCH
Hints, from gentle to full answers
Hint 1Group name cluesShowHide
Colors run from yellow (the most direct link) to purple (the trickiest).
Yellow: the group name is 2 words long and starts with S.
Green: the group name is 2 words long and starts with L.
Blue: the group name is 5 words long and starts with E.
Purple: the group name is 5 words long and starts with S.
Hint 2One word from each groupShowHide
Yellow: CHIP
Green: CHAD
Blue: BULGARI
Purple: CHICKEN
SpoilerThe four group namesShowHide
Yellow: SURFACE IMPERFECTIONS
Green: LANDLOCKED COUNTRIES
Blue: EUROPEAN COUNTRIES MINUS A LETTER
Purple: STARTING WITH WORDS FOR "STYLISH"
SpoilerReveal the yellow groupShowHide
SURFACE IMPERFECTIONS: CHIP, MARK, NICK, SCRATCH
SpoilerReveal the green groupShowHide
LANDLOCKED COUNTRIES: CHAD, HUNGARY, LAOS, PARAGUAY
SpoilerReveal the blue groupShowHide
EUROPEAN COUNTRIES MINUS A LETTER: BULGARI, CYRUS, HUNGRY, SPAN
SpoilerReveal the purple groupShowHide
STARTING WITH WORDS FOR "STYLISH": CHICKEN, COOLIDGE, HIPPO, SMARTIES