Daily puzzle archive
Connections clues for
September 16, 2026
Work through each group at your own pace. Hints first; answers only when you are ready.
Go at your own pace
Spoiler-free category hints
Clue vault
Nothing is shown until you choose. Take one small nudge at a time.
01Reveal gentle nudge +
Check the very last letters; they’re all wearing the same kind of chemical badge.
Reveal category
ENDING IN METAL ELEMENTS02Reveal gentle nudge +
At the front of each, you’ll spot something that jingles in a pocket.
Reveal category
STARTING WITH U.S. COINS03Reveal gentle nudge +
Put each in the middle of a celebrated verse writer’s full name.
Reveal category
POETS' MIDDLE NAMES04Reveal gentle nudge +
Each has one little alphabet stowaway tucked into something you might order from a grill.
Reveal category
SAUSAGES PLUS A LETTERSpoiler vault
Answers, when you’re ready
Each connection is named above its answers. Reveal letters yourself, or unlock one complete word at a time.
yellow
ENDING IN METAL ELEMENTS
green
STARTING WITH U.S. COINS
blue
POETS' MIDDLE NAMES
purple
SAUSAGES PLUS A LETTER
Connections clues for September 16, 2026
Welcome to a calmer way to work through today’s Connections puzzle. The board asks you to find four hidden families among sixteen words, but the best part is the little moment when a pattern clicks. Our clues are designed to protect that feeling: they point your thinking in a useful direction without handing you the finish line.
Start by reading the four gentle hints above. Each hint describes a category in everyday language, so you can return to the grid with a fresh angle. If one group feels close but not quite right, leave it for a minute and test another connection. The trickiest category is often built around a phrase, a spelling pattern, or a bit of cultural knowledge rather than a straightforward definition.
Need a nudge? Try sorting the words into a few rough piles: things that sound alike, words that can follow the same word, names you recognize, or terms from one familiar world. Four words may look like an obvious set but hide a red herring. That is normal. The puzzle is made to reward a second look.
When you are ready to check your work, open the answer cards one at a time. You will see the category first, then the four matching words. This keeps the final reveal readable and lets you learn why a group belongs together. For more help, visit our Connections Solver; for another day, browse the Connections Archive.