NYT Connections Answers Today (May 29): From Donuts To Salutes, Here’s What Links The Puzzle Words

NYT Connections Answers: Think you’ve cracked the code for Connections #717 on Thursday, May 29? If not, don’t worry — you’re not alone. The daily New York Times puzzle is designed to test your lateral thinking, often hiding the obvious in plain sight. Today’s game was a real brain-bender, packed with deceptive wordplay and more than a few red herrings.
So, if you’ve been scratching your head over words like “Muscular,” “Sprinkle,” or “Polish,” we’ve got you covered.
<h3 data-start=”545″ data-end=”573″>A Puzzle That Bites Back</h3>
The Connections game, one of NYT’s most popular offerings after Wordle, asks players to sort 16 seemingly unrelated words into four connected categories. The goal? Spot the hidden links — whether thematic, linguistic, or conceptual — and group the words correctly. But there’s a catch: make four mistakes and the game ends abruptly, revealing the answers whether you’re ready or not.
Today’s set included the following 16 words: Frost, Right, Muscular, Honor, Hail, Fit, Polish, Powder, Proper, Enthusiast, Nude, Applaud, Sprinkle, Praise, Apt, Glaze.
As always, the four colour-coded difficulty levels added an extra twist: Yellow (easiest), Green (easy), Blue (medium), and Purple (hardest).
<h3 data-start=”1286″ data-end=”1325″>Hints That Helped (But Also Misled)</h3>
To keep things spicy, NYT offered a few subtle clues for today’s edition.
<ul>
<li data-start=”1327″ data-end=”1584″>Yellow: “Think of a standing ovation.”</li>
<li data-start=”1327″ data-end=”1584″>Green: “Similar to ‘qualified’.”</li>
<li data-start=”1327″ data-end=”1584″>Blue: “Needed to prepare a policeman’s favourite snack.”</li>
<li data-start=”1327″ data-end=”1584″>Purple: “One word, four different meanings.”</li>
</ul>
Additional nudges pointed out that ‘Buff’ and ‘Fit’ do not belong together, despite what the gym-goers among us might think. Another clue? Each group had one word that started with the letter “P.”
<h3 data-start=”1795″ data-end=”1833″>And The Winning Categories Were…</h3>
If you’re here just for the final verdict, here are the four groups that cracked the puzzle:
<ul>
<li data-start=”1931″ data-end=”1984″>Yellow – Salute: Applaud, Hail, Honor, Praise</li>
<li data-start=”1987″ data-end=”2036″>Green – Suitable: Apt, Fit, Proper, Right</li>
<li data-start=”2039″ data-end=”2112″>Blue – Verbs For Finishing Donuts: Frost, Glaze, Powder, Sprinkle</li>
<li data-start=”2115″ data-end=”2188″>Purple – What “Buff” Might Mean: Enthusiast, Muscular, Nude, Polish</li>
</ul>
Yes, you read that right — “Buff” isn’t just about being jacked. In today’s puzzle, it flexed its full range of meanings: a fitness fanatic, a muscular physique, a nude colour, and even a polishing method.
Whether you breezed through it or needed a lifeline (or three), today’s Connections puzzle proves once again that words can be slippery creatures. Ready to take on tomorrow’s challenge? Better bring your thinking cap — and maybe a donut or two.