From TechRadar · · 1m 20s
NYT Connections #1193 was a trap-heavy stumper
TechRadar’s daily NYT Connections guide lays out the hints, answers, and why game #1193 caught even a regular solver out.
In brief
TechRadar’s daily NYT Connections guide lays out the hints, answers, and why game #1193 caught even a regular solver out. The September 16 puzzle hinged on wordplay and misdirection, especially coins, metals, poet names, and sausages with one extra letter. Originally reported by TechRadar.
Start with the grid
Game #1193 opened with a strange mix of words, from FRANK-N-FURTER and PENNYWISE to LATIN, MARIGOLD, QUARTERBACK, and ST. VINCENT.
“Today's NYT Connections words are…”
Hints came first
The guide gave four clue lines before revealing anything: metallic endings, currency starts, middle names for poets, and hot dogs with a twist.
“YELLOW: Metallic final”
The groups were named
The themes were ending in metal elements, starting with U.S. coins, poets' middle names, and sausages plus a letter.
“SAUSAGES PLUS A LETTER”
Then came the answers
LATIN, LONG JOHN SILVER, MARIGOLD, and STEAM IRON made the metal group. DIMENSION, NICKELODEON, PENNYWISE, and QUARTERBACK began with U.S. coins.
“ENDING IN METAL ELEMENTS”
Poets and sausages
BARRETT, CARLOS, ST. VINCENT, and WADSWORTH matched poets' middle names. BORAT, CLINK, FRANK-N-FURTER, and WIDENER hid sausages with one added letter.
“POETS' MIDDLE NAMES”
Tim Curry misled
The solver got pulled toward a Tim Curry theme because FRANK-N-FURTER and PENNYWISE both fit. WADSWORTH made that false path even more tempting.
“The main reason for my downfall was the actor Tim Curry”
A rare loss
TechRadar rated the puzzle hard and marked it as a fail, calling it the first Connections loss in months and praising anyone who finished it.
“Kudos if you completed this very hard game.”
The headline
The September 16 puzzle hinged on wordplay and misdirection, especially coins, metals, poet names, and sausages with one extra letter.
