Looking for today’s NYT Connections hints and answers? The New York Times Connections puzzle for Wednesday, September 16, 2026, is game #1193. The daily word puzzle asks players to arrange 16 words into four groups of four based on a shared connection. Each group can involve anything from straightforward definitions to tricky wordplay.
Today’s puzzle has connections involving metal elements, U.S. coins, poets and sausages. Some words can appear to fit more than one category, making careful elimination important.
Spoiler warning: The complete NYT Connections answers are included below.
NYT Connections Hints for September 16
If you want to solve today’s puzzle without immediately seeing the solutions, start with these NYT Connections hints:
- Yellow: Think about the periodic table and metal elements.
- Green: Look for words that begin with the names of U.S. coins.
- Blue: Think of poets and their middle names.
- Purple: Look for a type of sausage hidden inside each word, with an extra letter.
These clues correspond to the four categories confirmed by multiple puzzle guides.
Today’s NYT Connections Answers
Ready for the full solution? Here are the answers for NYT Connections #1193.
Yellow: ENDING IN METAL ELEMENTS
LATIN, LONG JOHN SILVER, MARIGOLD, STEAM IRON
These words end with names or symbols associated with metal elements. For example, LATIN ends in tin, while LONG JOHN SILVER ends in silver. MARIGOLD contains gold at the end, and STEAM IRON ends with iron.
Green: STARTING WITH U.S. COINS
DIMENSION, NICKELODEON, PENNYWISE, QUARTERBACK
Each word starts with the name of a U.S. coin: dime in DIMENSION, nickel in NICKELODEON, penny in PENNYWISE and quarter in QUARTERBACK. This makes the category easier to spot once the coin names become apparent.
Blue: POETS’ MIDDLE NAMES
BARRETT, CARLOS, ST. VINCENT, WADSWORTH
These words connect to poets’ middle names. This is one of the more difficult groups because the words do not immediately appear related without recognizing the names involved.
Purple: SAUSAGES PLUS A LETTER
BORAT, CLINK, FRANK-N-FURTER, WIDENER
This is the trickiest category. Each word contains a sausage name with an additional letter. FRANK-N-FURTER is the most obvious example, while the other entries require closer inspection and wordplay.
How to Solve NYT Connections Today
The best way to approach NYT Connections is to look for a group with a very specific relationship instead of grouping words based only on broad similarities.
Start with the most recognizable connection and remove those four words. Then examine the remaining entries for hidden patterns. Be especially careful with words that could reasonably belong to more than one group.
Today’s puzzle demonstrates why this strategy matters. Names such as FRANK-N-FURTER and PENNYWISE can suggest completely different connections, potentially leading players toward an incorrect group.
Players get four mistakes before the puzzle ends, so taking time to test a category before submitting it can help preserve guesses.
Conclusion
Today’s NYT Connections #1193 combines wordplay, names and hidden references to create a challenging daily puzzle. The metal-element and U.S.-coin groups provide useful starting points, while the poets and sausage categories require more careful thinking.
If you were stuck, these NYT Connections hints and answers for September 16, 2026 should help you understand how all 16 words connect. Come back tomorrow for the latest Connections clues, categories and solutions.
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