Unscrambled Clues and Solutions for the NYT Sunday Crossword Puzzle on May 4, 2025
Revamped Article:
Hey there! Ready to crack the May 4, 2025 Connections puzzle? I've got the lowdown on some solid clues, clever wordplay, and the answers to all four categories - so let's dive in!
Might as well bookmark this page for a fast return whenever you're in need of a daily Connections fix. You can also check out our collection of hints for past puzzles right here.
Here's a sneak peek at today's sneaky hints for the theme groups:
- Yellow: A disaster in the kitchen when your meat has been overcooked to perfection.
- Green: What you can do with an electric guitar, just like rock gods Jimi Hendrix or Prince.
- Blue: Exotically refreshing ingredients found in bubble tea, with roots in Taiwan.
- Purple: Celestial bodies mistakenly spelled, with the first letter swapped.
Be Prepared: May 4, NYT Connections #693 Spoilers Ahead!
We're about to reveal a few answers. Keep it slow if you'd rather not have the entire thing spoiled. (You'll find the complete solution a bit further down.)
Here's a heads up for the tricky bits
Despite the words SOLO, CHEWY, and DARTH on the board, there's no Star Wars category today. The game does feature, however, a space-themed category-you'll need to find it yourself!
JAM symbolizes a music event.
If your dish is tough, you might need extra chewing power.
A drink with Boba typically comes with a long straw.
What are the categories today?
- Yellow: Characters of Overcooked Meat
- Green: Rock Out with Some Electric Guitar
- Blue: Components of Bubble Tea
- Purple: Distorted Celestial Bodies
Triple Warning: The Solution is Below
Eager to learn the answers for today's Connections enigma? Here they are, in all their glory.
Yellow Words
The yellow cluster is relatively simple. The overarching theme for today's yellow group is Characters of Overcooked Meat, and the terms are: CHEWY, DRY, STRINGY, TOUGH.
Green Words
The green grouping takes a bit of effort. The theme for today's green category is Rock Out with Some Electric Guitar, and the terms are: JAM, NOODLE, SHRED, SOLO.
Blue Words
The blue grouping challenges you a bit more. The theme for today's blue category is Components of Bubble Tea, and the terms are: BOBA, MILK, SUGAR, TEA.
Purple Words
The purple grouping is the most challenging. The theme for today's purple category is Distorted Celestial Bodies, and the terms are: BLUTO, CARS, DARTH, GENUS.
Solving the Connections Puzzle
I noticed some cool references to May the 4th Be With You, but I reckon they're just misdirections. (It's a trap, you might say.)
BLUTO caught my eye as it resembles Pluto, with the first letter changed. DARTH (Earth), GENUS (Venus), and CARS (Mars) fit that pattern.
CHEWY, STRINGY, TOUGH, and DRY are all unappealing cooking results. Let's test that theory.
BOBA, MILK, SUGAR, and TEA all could be components of bubble tea. That leaves SOLO, NOODLE, SHRED, and JAM, which are synonyms for techniques commonly used in guitar solos.
Playing Connections
Need a primer on how to play Connections? I've got you covered with a complete guide right here. But here's a quick refresher:
Find the Connections game on the New York Times website or their Games app (formerly the Crossword app). You'll see a game board with 16 tiles, each with one word or phrase. Your task is to select a group of four tiles with a common connection, often all the same type of object (e.g., RAIN, SLEET, HAIL, AND SNOW are all forms of precipitation), but sometimes there's a clever play on words involved (e.g., BUCKET, GUEST, TOP TEN, and WISH are all forms of lists).
Submit your guess, and if it's correct, the category and color will be revealed. The yellow category is the easiest, followed by green, then blue, and finally purple. If your guess is incorrect, you'll have another chance to try again.
Complete all four groups, and you've won! If you make four incorrect guesses before finishing, the game ends, and the answers will be revealed.
Winning Strategies for Connections
The secret to winning Connections lies in the fact that the groupings are designed to be tricky. Expect overlapping groups. For example, a puzzle might seem to include six breakfast foods: BACON, EGG, PANCAKE, OMELET, WAFFLE, and CEREAL. But BACON turned out to be part of a group of pig farmers along with SQUEAL, SNOUT, TRIPE, and SAUSAGE, and EGG was in a group of rounded items (along with BALL, OVAL, COIL, and ORB). So double-check that your group of four contains only those four items before submitting.
If you're stuck, try focusing on the words that don't seem to have any connection to the others. If only the thought of Peter Frampton playing the guitar pops into your mind when you see WHISTLER, you might be on to something. When I solved that one, I found myself pondering if there was a farmer named Close, because CLOSE didn't fit any of the obvious themes.
Another effective strategy when you're stuck is to read helpful hints - like the ones we provide daily! Check back tomorrow for a new puzzle!
- To avoid spoilers, bookmark this page for future use when seeking help with the 'Connections' puzzle in the New York Times.
- Today's 'Connections' puzzle categories are: 'Yellow' - Characters of Overcooked Meat, 'Green' - Rock Out with Some Electric Guitar, 'Blue' - Components of Bubble Tea, and 'Purple' - Distorted Celestial Bodies.
- The theme for the 'Yellow' category in today's Connections puzzle suggests that the terms CHEWY, DRY, STRINGY, and TOUGH are all unappealing cooking results.
- In the 'Green' category, the terms JAM, NOODLE, SHRED, and SOLO could be synonyms for techniques commonly used in guitar solos.
- If you're still having trouble with the Connections puzzle, consider utilizing technology such as hints and guidebooks for additional assistance in solving the mystery.
