HARDPuzzle #1156

NYT Connections Hints & Answers (#1156) – Today's Puzzle, Aug 10

TODAY'S NYT CONNECTIONS TIP

“Start by locking in the yellow group ("HAPHAZARDLY") first to narrow the grid from 16 to 12 words.”

Written by Naveed Ahmed · Updated: August 10, 2026

← Yesterday's Connections Hint (#1155, Aug 9)

Connections Hint for Each Word Today

Tap any word to see its Connections hint — what it means in today's puzzle, no spoilers.

ANY OLD HOW hint: In the context of haphazardly, "ANY OLD HOW" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

AT RANDOM hint: In the context of haphazardly, "AT RANDOM" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

HELTER-SKELTER hint: In the context of haphazardly, "HELTER-SKELTER" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

WILLY-NILLY hint: In the context of haphazardly, "WILLY-NILLY" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

MAIL DELIVERY hint: In the context of ways to receive event tickets, "MAIL DELIVERY" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

MOBILE TICKET hint: In the context of ways to receive event tickets, "MOBILE TICKET" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

PRINT-AT-HOME hint: In the context of ways to receive event tickets, "PRINT-AT-HOME" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

WILL CALL hint: In the context of ways to receive event tickets, "WILL CALL" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

BALANCE DUE hint: In the context of sections on an invoice, "BALANCE DUE" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

BILL TO hint: In the context of sections on an invoice, "BILL TO" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

ORDER NUMBER hint: In the context of sections on an invoice, "ORDER NUMBER" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

UNIT PRICE hint: In the context of sections on an invoice, "UNIT PRICE" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

BILLY GOAT hint: In the context of famous goatees, "BILLY GOAT" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

COLONEL SANDERS hint: In the context of famous goatees, "COLONEL SANDERS" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

DOCTOR STRANGE hint: In the context of famous goatees, "DOCTOR STRANGE" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

THE DEVIL hint: In the context of famous goatees, "THE DEVIL" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

Hints uncovered0 / 16

Today's NYT Connections Hints for All Four Categories

Reveal progressively: see the category hint first, then the group name, then individual words — stop whenever you have enough.

🟡 Straightforward

🟢 Medium

🔵 Hard

🟣 Tricky

⚠️Traps & Misdirects Hints for Today’s Connections Puzzle

Today’s Connections puzzle includes words intentionally placed to misdirect you into wrong groups. These traps and misdirects hints reveal which words are designed to mislead, so you don’t burn your 4 allowed mistakes on deliberate decoys.

Decoys between HAPHAZARDLY and WAYS TO RECEIVE EVENT TICKETS

Words like ANY OLD HOW and MAIL DELIVERY appear to overlap in everyday usage, but their true connections belong to separate categories.

Wordplay Red Herrings in "FAMOUS GOATEES"

The purple category ("FAMOUS GOATEES") uses deceptive associations with BILLY GOAT, COLONEL SANDERS, DOCTOR STRANGE, THE DEVIL. Look beyond surface definitions to find the hidden theme.

Today's NYT Connections Answers

Click to reveal the complete solution — all four categories.

Category: HAPHAZARDLY (Straightforward) — Answers: ANY OLD HOW, AT RANDOM, HELTER-SKELTER, WILLY-NILLY

Category: WAYS TO RECEIVE EVENT TICKETS (Medium) — Answers: MAIL DELIVERY, MOBILE TICKET, PRINT-AT-HOME, WILL CALL

Category: SECTIONS ON AN INVOICE (Hard) — Answers: BALANCE DUE, BILL TO, ORDER NUMBER, UNIT PRICE

Category: FAMOUS GOATEES (Tricky) — Answers: BILLY GOAT, COLONEL SANDERS, DOCTOR STRANGE, THE DEVIL

Today's NYT Connections Answers Explained

HAPHAZARDLY

The words ANY OLD HOW, AT RANDOM, HELTER-SKELTER, WILLY-NILLY all share a unique thematic connection as haphazardly.

ANY OLD HOW

In the context of haphazardly, "ANY OLD HOW" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

AT RANDOM

In the context of haphazardly, "AT RANDOM" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

HELTER-SKELTER

In the context of haphazardly, "HELTER-SKELTER" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

WILLY-NILLY

In the context of haphazardly, "WILLY-NILLY" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

WAYS TO RECEIVE EVENT TICKETS

The words MAIL DELIVERY, MOBILE TICKET, PRINT-AT-HOME, WILL CALL all share a unique thematic connection as ways to receive event tickets.

MAIL DELIVERY

In the context of ways to receive event tickets, "MAIL DELIVERY" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

MOBILE TICKET

In the context of ways to receive event tickets, "MOBILE TICKET" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

PRINT-AT-HOME

In the context of ways to receive event tickets, "PRINT-AT-HOME" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

WILL CALL

In the context of ways to receive event tickets, "WILL CALL" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

SECTIONS ON AN INVOICE

The words BALANCE DUE, BILL TO, ORDER NUMBER, UNIT PRICE all share a unique thematic connection as sections on an invoice.

BALANCE DUE

In the context of sections on an invoice, "BALANCE DUE" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

BILL TO

In the context of sections on an invoice, "BILL TO" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

ORDER NUMBER

In the context of sections on an invoice, "ORDER NUMBER" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

UNIT PRICE

In the context of sections on an invoice, "UNIT PRICE" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

FAMOUS GOATEES

The words BILLY GOAT, COLONEL SANDERS, DOCTOR STRANGE, THE DEVIL all share a unique thematic connection as famous goatees.

BILLY GOAT

In the context of famous goatees, "BILLY GOAT" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

COLONEL SANDERS

In the context of famous goatees, "COLONEL SANDERS" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

DOCTOR STRANGE

In the context of famous goatees, "DOCTOR STRANGE" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

THE DEVIL

In the context of famous goatees, "THE DEVIL" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

What Makes Today’s NYT Connections Puzzle Tricky?

MAIL DELIVERY, MOBILE TICKET, PRINT-AT-HOME, WILL CALL sit alongside BALANCE DUE, BILL TO, ORDER NUMBER, UNIT PRICE and phrases like BILLY GOAT, COLONEL SANDERS, DOCTOR STRANGE, THE DEVIL — a collision of distinct word groups and subtle misdirects.

The editor's sharpest trick is hiding a word-within-a-word: some of the multi-word phrases are not grouped by their topic but by what their first word secretly means.

How to Use Connections Hints

Everyone playing NYT Connections puzzle gets stuck at a different point. Some players can’t figure out a single word. Others have three groups solved and can’t find the fourth. Where you are stuck determines which connection hint you need.

A word in the puzzle has an unfamiliar meaning

Some words in today’s NYT Connections puzzle are uncommon. Connections editor Wyna Liu often uses words with specific or less familiar meanings, particularly in the green, blue, and purple categories. If you don’t know what a word means, you cannot reliably place it in a group.

Recommendation: Use the Word Hint. It tells you what the word means in the context of today’s puzzle. Tap any word directly on the board above to see its hint.

No groups are forming after reading all sixteen words

The connection between words is often not obvious from their meanings alone — categories are built around themes that require a specific angle to see. These category-level clues are the most useful hints.

Recommendation: Use the Category Hint. It points you toward the theme of a category without revealing the category name or which words belong to it. Tap “Yellow Category Hint” first.

You have a possible group but aren’t ready to guess

You think four words belong together but you’re not confident enough to guess. If you’re unsure, don’t guess yet — a wrong guess costs you one of your four mistakes.

Recommendation: Use the Category Name. It reveals the exact name of the category without showing you which words belong to it.

One word seems to fit more than one group

You have built a group of four words but one word in it could also fit somewhere else. NYT Connections editor Wyna Liu deliberately places misleading words on the board.

Recommendation: Use the Traps and Misdirects Hints. It identifies the specific misleading words in today’s puzzle and explains why they don’t belong where you think they do.

You know the category but can’t find all four words

You have identified the theme of a category but can’t find all four words that belong to it.

Recommendation: Use the Word Reveal. It uncovers one masked word at a time without revealing the full group. This is the most precise connection hint available.

One mistake left with two groups unsolved

You have one mistake remaining and two groups unsolved. If you guess wrong here, the game ends and NYT reveals all the answers automatically.

Recommendation: Do not guess yet. Use the Category Name for both remaining groups first. If that is still not enough, tap “Category Words” and reveal one word at a time.

You want today’s answers without solving the puzzle

Use the Answers section. It shows all four category names and the four words that belong to each one.

Recommendation: Go to the Answers section.

The puzzle is over but a category still doesn’t make sense

You can see the four groups and their words but the connection between them isn’t clear.

Recommendation: Use the Answer Explanation. It tells you exactly what connects the words in each category and why each individual word belongs there.

Browse Past Puzzles

View answers and hints for every previous NYT Connections puzzle.

Puzzle Archive →

Frequently Asked Questions

NYT Connections is a daily word puzzle by The New York Times where you group 16 words into 4 categories of 4 words each. Each category has a hidden theme color-coded by difficulty.

Yellow is the most straightforward category, Green is medium difficulty, Blue is harder, and Purple contains the trickiest, most misleading groupings.

Yes, NYT Connections is free to play once per day on the New York Times Games website.

A new NYT Connections puzzle releases every day at midnight in your local time zone (12:00 AM ET for US Eastern Time).

Naveed Ahmed

@NaveedAhmedDev

Lead Writer & Connections Puzzle Analyst

Naveed is a dedicated puzzle strategist and word game analyst who breaks down daily NYT Connections categories, uncovers tricky wordplay patterns, and delivers progressive, spoiler-free clues to help thousands of players solve every puzzle.