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Happy Saturday, puzzlers! If you are staring at sixteen squares and feeling completely stuck, you aren’t alone. The weekend puzzles often bring a slight difficulty spike, and the NYT connections January 17, 2026 board is no exception. Today’s grid features a mix of physical actions, wordplay, and a dash of childhood nostalgia.
Below, we have compiled a complete guide to help you save your streak. We will start with gentle hints for the categories, then reveal the full solution at the bottom.
Connections Hints 17 January 2026
Before we reveal the answers, here are a few hints to help you solve the groups on your own.
- Yellow Category Hint: Think about thick layers. These words describe the act of putting a layer of something over a surface or an object.
- Green Category Hint: It’s all about propulsion. Every word here is a verb used when you want to send an object flying through the air.
- Blue Category Hint: Look closely at the spelling. This is a classic “word nerd” category where the definition doesn’t matter as much as the letters themselves.
- Purple Category Hint: Playground memories. These are the first words of very famous games you likely played as a kid.
Connections 17 January 2026 Answers
If the hints didn’t click, or if you are down to your last mistake and just need the solution, here are the groups for today.
Yellow: Spread Over
- BLANKET
- COAT
- COVER
- PLASTER
Green: Throw
- CAST
- HURL
- PELT
- SLING
Blue: Anagrams
- INKS
- KINS
- SINK
- SKIN
Purple: First Words of Kids’ Games
- CAPTURE (the Flag)
- HIDE (and Seek)
- RED (Light, Green Light)
- SIMON (Says)
Puzzle Analysis
The Connections 17 January 2026 answers were a fun mix. The tricky part today was likely distinguishing between the Green and Yellow groups. Words like “PELT” or “CAST” can sometimes feel like they belong in multiple contexts, but once you realized the Blue category was simply anagrams of the letters I-N-K-S, the board likely opened up.
The Purple category was a delightful trip down memory lane. “RED” is often a red herring in color categories, but here it stood for “Red Light, Green Light.”
More Puzzle Help
Now that you’ve sorted out your groups, don’t forget to finish your other daily brain teasers!
- Strands: Today’s theme is “That’s putting it mildly!” If you are stuck on the Spangram, check out our guide to NYT Strands for January 17, 2026.
- Wordle: Did you get the fiery answer today? See the full breakdown in our Wordle January 17, 2026 Today article.
For more tools to help you master word games, or to find new puzzles to play, visit Shrinkle.online. They offer excellent resources for anyone seeking to enhance their puzzle-solving skills.