NYT Connections Hints & Answers — Sunday, September 28, 2025 (#840)
Puzzle #840. Start with a gentle nudge and work down — the full answers are at the bottom, hidden until you ask for them.
Just tell me the answer
The NYT Connections answer for Sunday, September 28, 2025 (puzzle #840) is: YELLOW — BACKING: AEGIS, GUARD, PROTECTION, SHIELD. GREEN — MALICIOUS SOFTWARE: BACKDOOR, TROJAN HORSE, VIRUS, WORM. BLUE — GUM BRANDS: EXTRA, ICE BREAKERS, ORBIT, TRIDENT. PURPLE — N.F.L. TEAM LOGOS: BUFFALO, FLEUR-DE-LIS, HORSESHOE, LIGHTNING BOLT.
Today's 16 words
The grid exactly as NYT laid it out for Sunday, September 28, 2025. Nothing below this point is spoiled until you open it.
TRIDENT
BUFFALO
WORM
LIGHTNING BOLT
TROJAN HORSE
EXTRA
HORSESHOE
AEGIS
FLEUR-DE-LIS
BACKDOOR
SHIELD
ORBIT
GUARD
ICE BREAKERS
VIRUS
PROTECTION
How hard is Connections #840?
Easy35/100
• At least one entry is a phrase rather than a single word.
Where to start: Every category here is meaning-based, so group by topic first and use the four-per-group constraint to settle any word that could go two ways.
Connections hints for Sunday, September 28, 2025
Four levels, each giving away a little more. Open only as many as you need.
yellow(the most straightforward group — start here) A group united by what they ARE, not by wordplay — the category is a single word beginning with "B".
green(a little trickier, but still direct) A group united by what they ARE, not by wordplay — think about software.
blue(where the misdirection usually starts) A group united by what they ARE, not by wordplay — think about brands.
purple(the wordplay group, and almost always the last to fall) A group united by what they ARE, not by wordplay — think about logos.
yellow4 things that belong to the same real-world set — the link is meaning, not spelling.
green4 things that belong to the same real-world set — the link is meaning, not spelling.
blue4 things that belong to the same real-world set — the link is meaning, not spelling.
purple4 things that belong to the same real-world set — the link is meaning, not spelling.
yellowOne member is
greenOne member is
blueOne member is
purpleOne member is
yellow
green
blue
purple
NYT Connections answers for Sunday, September 28, 2025
PuzzlePage is an independent fan site. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by The New York Times Company. Connections and Wordle are trademarks of The New York Times Company.
Common questions
What is the NYT Connections answer for Sunday, September 28, 2025?
The NYT Connections answer for Sunday, September 28, 2025 (puzzle #840) is: YELLOW — BACKING: AEGIS, GUARD, PROTECTION, SHIELD. GREEN — MALICIOUS SOFTWARE: BACKDOOR, TROJAN HORSE, VIRUS, WORM. BLUE — GUM BRANDS: EXTRA, ICE BREAKERS, ORBIT, TRIDENT. PURPLE — N.F.L. TEAM LOGOS: BUFFALO, FLEUR-DE-LIS, HORSESHOE, LIGHTNING BOLT.
What is the purple group in Connections #840?
The purple (hardest) group is "N.F.L. TEAM LOGOS": BUFFALO, FLEUR-DE-LIS, HORSESHOE, LIGHTNING BOLT.
What is the easiest group in today's Connections puzzle?
The yellow group is the most straightforward: "BACKING" — AEGIS, GUARD, PROTECTION, SHIELD. Solving it first removes four words from the grid.
What number is today's Connections puzzle?
Sunday, September 28, 2025 is NYT Connections puzzle #840. Connections launched on 12 June 2023 with puzzle #1, and a new puzzle is published every day.
What time does a new NYT Connections puzzle come out?
A new Connections puzzle unlocks at midnight in your own local time zone, so the changeover happens at a different moment around the world. The puzzle itself is the same for everyone on a given date.