NYT Connections Answer — February 25, 2026
Puzzle #990 · 16 words, 4 groups
Here is the full solution to the NYT Connections puzzle for Wednesday, February 25, 2026 (#990). The 16-word board is below, followed by all four groups — in difficulty order from yellow (easiest) to purple (trickiest). Answers stay hidden until you tap Reveal, so you can peek at the board first.
Today's board
NAPKIN
COOK
BABY
PRINCIPAL
DEAN
NURSE
KEY
MOTHER
BASIC
ALKALINE
HARDEN
FOSTER
DIATRIBE
PRIMARY
BROWN
DECLAN
The four groups
Yellow · StraightforwardCARE FOR
BABY, FOSTER, MOTHER, NURSE
Green · ModerateELEMENTARY
BASIC, KEY, PRIMARY, PRINCIPAL
Blue · TrickyJAMESES
BROWN, COOK, DEAN, HARDEN
Purple · TrickiestENDING IN FAMILY WORDS
ALKALINE, DECLAN, DIATRIBE, NAPKIN
No spoilers — tap to show the answers
Recent Connections puzzles
#1134
Jul 19, 2026
#1133
Jul 18, 2026
#1132
Jul 17, 2026
#1131
Jul 16, 2026
#1130
Jul 15, 2026
#1129
Jul 14, 2026
#1128
Jul 13, 2026
#1127
Jul 12, 2026
How Connections works
NYT Connections gives you a grid of 16 words. Your goal is to sort them into four groups of four, where each group shares a hidden connection. The groups are colour-coded by difficulty: yellow is the most straightforward, then green and blue, and purple is usually the trickiest — often a wordplay or category twist. You get four mistakes before the game ends, and words that could fit more than one group are the classic traps.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are today's Connections answers?
Tap Reveal the 4 groups above to see all four categories and their words for #990, in difficulty order from yellow to purple.
What do the colours mean?
Yellow is the easiest group, followed by green and blue, and purple is the hardest — usually the one with a twist or wordplay.
When does the next Connections come out?
A new NYT Connections puzzle is released every day. We publish the verified answers each morning.
Where do I play Connections?
Play free at nytimes.com/games/connections or in the NYT Games app. This is an independent reference site, not affiliated with The New York Times.