NYT Connections Answers Today (April 9): Witchy Brews, Foxy Phrases, & Some Serious Punches

The 16 words on the NYT Connections board today were: Dog, Pop, Ball, Sock, Slug, Frog, Glove, Trot, Bat, Hound, Globe, Pound, Orb, Newt, Hole, and Sphere.

If today’s NYT Connections felt like a mental marathon, you’re not alone.

Source : Screenshot/New York Times

NYT Connections Answers: If you spent your morning spiraling into a vortex of wordy confusion, you're not alone. The New York Times’ daily brain teaser, Connections, had players stretching their minds across everything from Shakespearean spells to surprise uppercuts in its April 9 edition.

Let’s break down what made today’s puzzle particularly tricky — and how to untangle it.

A Shape-Shifting Start

The 16 words on the board today were: Dog, Pop, Ball, Sock, Slug, Frog, Glove, Trot, Bat, Hound, Globe, Pound, Orb, Newt, Hole, and Sphere.

At first glance, many seemed to fall into multiple categories, a classic Connections move. “Ball,” “Orb,” “Sphere,” and “Globe” shared one obvious feature: they’re all perfectly round and three-dimensional. This yellow group – the easiest in difficulty – was all about spherical shapes.

Clue givers even hinted at this early in the day: “Yellow: All of these are the same shape.” That certainly helped players lock down the first group quickly.

Don’t Get Sock-ed By the Green Group

The next set threw a bit more punch – literally.

“Pop,” “Pound,” “Slug,” and “Sock” all have a common denominator: they’re used to describe punches. But here's the twist: “Sock” does not refer to the foot covering, the clue clarified. So if you were picturing footwear, you were already headed in the wrong direction.

Players had to think more like boxers than dressers for this one. This was the green group – easy, but not obvious unless you’re familiar with slang.

Double, Double, Toil and Trouble

One of today’s most creative categories was tied to literature – more specifically, Shakespeare’s Macbeth. The blue group featured “Bat,” “Dog,” “Frog,” and “Newt,” all animals that could be found brewing in the witches’ cauldron.

This grouping was hinted at as: “Used by three witches.” A literary twist not all players might have caught right away.

The inclusion of “Dog” might have raised eyebrows, but the infamous brew in Macbeth does include “eye of newt” and “tongue of dog,” making the theme spot-on for fans of the Bard.

A Foxy Finale

Now for the trickiest part — today’s purple group.

This set required players to think about what could follow the word “Fox.” If you cracked the code, you’d have grouped “Hole,” “Hound,” “Glove,” and “Trot” together.

“All of these can come after the name of a dog-like orange mammal,” today’s hint said. In other words: think compound words or phrases. “Foxhole,” “Foxhound,” “Foxglove,” and “Foxtrot” – clever, and certainly not the most obvious link for many.

Final Answers Recap

• Yellow: Round Three-Dimensional Objects (Ball, Globe, Orb, Sphere)
• Green: Punch (Pop, Pound, Slug, Sock)
• Blue: Animals in the Witches’ Brew in Macbeth (Bat, Dog, Frog, Newt)
• Purple: Fox___ (Hole, Hound, Glove, Trot)

If today’s puzzle felt like a mental marathon, you’re not alone. But if you managed to get all four without using up your mistake limit, give yourself a pat on the back — or maybe a celebratory foxtrot.