NYT Connections February 17 2026 Answers
Puzzle #982
EDITED BY WYNA LIUToday's 16-word board, in its starting order:
PLUM LEAF FLASH BUSTLE THUMB OYSTER FLOPPY ZIP SKIM SOY DART BOMBAY SPEED FLIP HOISIN MISSUS
Category hints (no spoilers)
Yellow — ZOOM
Green — SAUCES IN CHINESE CUISINE
Blue — RIFFLE (THROUGH)
Purple — STARTING WITH SYNONYMS FOR "DUD"
ZOOMDART, FLASH, SPEED, ZIP
SAUCES IN CHINESE CUISINEHOISIN, OYSTER, PLUM, SOY
RIFFLE (THROUGH)FLIP, LEAF, SKIM, THUMB
STARTING WITH SYNONYMS FOR "DUD"BOMBAY, BUSTLE, FLOPPY, MISSUS
Checked against the official NYT Connections solution
How Connections works
Connections gives you 16 words that form four secret groups of four. Find each group — yellow is the easiest, then green, blue, and the famously tricky purple. You're allowed four mistakes. A new puzzle drops daily at midnight; play free at nytimes.com.