The New York Times’ popular word-grouping game Connections delivered a brain-teasing puzzle on Saturday, February 28, 2026, with #993 rated moderately difficult at 2.8 out of 5 by the official Connections Companion. Featuring 16 words that required sharp pattern recognition and lateral thinking, today’s board tested players’ ability to spot synonyms, occupational links, sound-alikes and clever wordplay involving celestial terms.

Connections, launched in 2023 as a daily companion to Wordle, tasks solvers with grouping 16 words into four themed categories of four words each. Categories range from straightforward (yellow) to fiendishly obscure (purple), with no repeats and perfect groupings needed to win. Puzzle #993 proved tricky for many, particularly in the blue and purple groups, where misdirection and homophones played key roles.

The 16 words in today’s puzzle were: START, KNEEL, TAILOR, SALESMAN, COMETH, PILOT, EARNEST, ITCH, DESIRE, ROADIE, RUSTLE, SUNG, NOVAK, THIRST, CRUISE DIRECTOR, URGE.

Hints circulated widely on gaming sites and social media to guide players without full spoilers. Mashable suggested “Yearning” for the easiest group and “On the road again” for another. CNET advised looking for “When you really want something” and “Flight attendants also.” Rock Paper Shotgun offered “Magnetic pulls” and “Those who gather no moss,” while Tom’s Guide noted “Crave astronomical jobs, Rustle” as a larger clue. Forbes provided one-word teasers: ITCH for yellow, PILOT for green, KNEEL for blue and SUNG for purple.

The solution broke down as follows:

– **Yellow (easiest):** Craving — DESIRE, ITCH, THIRST, URGE. These words all represent strong wants or yearnings, a classic synonym category that many solved first.

– **Green:** Jobs that involve traveling — CRUISE DIRECTOR, PILOT, ROADIE, SALESMAN. Each profession requires frequent movement: cruise directors sail oceans, pilots fly planes, roadies tour with bands, and salesmen hit the road for clients.

– **Blue:** Name homophones — EARNEST, KNEEL, RUSTLE, TAILOR. These sound like common first names: Ernest, Neil, Russell and Taylor. The auditory twist made this group deceptive, as players often grouped them by appearance before catching the pronunciation link.

– **Purple (hardest):** Astronomical terms plus a letter — COMETH, NOVAK, START, SUNG. Adding one letter transforms them into celestial words: COME + TH = COMETH (as in “Here cometh the sun”), NOVA + K = NOVAK (nova is a star explosion), STAR + T = START (star is a celestial body), SUN + G = SUNG (sun is the star we orbit). This category demanded creative thinking and knowledge of astronomy basics.

The puzzle’s difficulty stemmed from overlapping themes — travel words mixed with names, cravings with urges — and the purple group’s wordplay requiring an extra step. Many players reported four or five attempts, with some losing streaks on missteps like grouping names literally or missing the added-letter mechanic.

Social media buzzed with reactions. On Reddit’s r/NYTConnections, users praised the blue homophone group for cleverness but grumbled at purple’s obscurity. “That astronomical one got me — who thinks of adding letters like that?” one commenter wrote. Others celebrated perfect solves, sharing grids with the signature colored squares: four yellow, green, blue and purple rows.

Connections Companion noted the average solve time hovered around 3-4 minutes for experts, longer for casual players. The game’s streak counter and shareable results (with emoji grids) kept engagement high, as friends compared performances.

The New York Times continues to evolve Connections with fresh themes and increasing variety. Saturday’s edition rewarded vocabulary breadth, cultural knowledge and lateral thinking, making it a standout in the daily rotation.

Players access the free puzzle at nytimes.com/games/connections, with a new challenge resetting at midnight local time. No subscription is needed for basic play, though Times membership unlocks additional games like Wordle, Strands and the Mini Crossword.

As February ends, Connections remains a daily ritual for millions, blending logic, language and surprise. Puzzle #993 reminded solvers that connections often hide in plain sight — or sound — waiting to be discovered.