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Connections is the one of the most popular New York Times word games that's captured the public's attention. The game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for today's Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable What is Connections?

The NYT's latest daily word game has become a social media hit. The Times credits associate puzzle editor Wyna Liu with helping to create the new word game and bringing it to the publications' Games section. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

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Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.

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Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

SEE ALSO: NYT's The Mini crossword answers for August 4 Here's a hint for today's Connections categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: An ordeal

• Green: Round items

• Blue: Needed for tobacco

• Purple: Not up

Featured Video For You Connections: How to play and how to win Here are today's Connections categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Predicament

• Green: Small spherical things

• Blue: Pipe-smoking accessories

• Purple: What "down" might mean

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections #807 is...

What is the answer to Connections today

• Predicament: FIX, JAM, MESS, PICKLE

• Small spherical things: MOTHBALL, PEA, PEARL, POM-POM

• Pipe-smoking accessories: FILTER, LIGHTER, PIPE CLEANER, TAMPER

• What "down" might mean: FEATHERS, GUZZLE, SAD, WILLING

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for August 4

Are you also playing NYT Strands?

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to the latest Connections.

If you're reading this, you're looking for a little help playing Strands, the New York Times' elevated word-search game.

Strands requires the player to perform a twist on the classic word search. Words can be made from linked letters — up, down, left, right, or diagonal, but words can also change direction, resulting in quirky shapes and patterns. Every single letter in the grid will be part of an answer. There's always a theme linking every solution, along with the "spangram," a special, word or phrase that sums up that day's theme, and spans the entire grid horizontally or vertically.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable

By providing an opaque hint and not providing the word list, Strands creates a brain-teasing game that takes a little longer to play than its other games, like Wordle and Connections.

If you're feeling stuck or just don't have 10 or more minutes to figure out today's puzzle, we've got all the NYT Strands hints for today's puzzle you need to progress at your preferrined pace.

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for August 4 SEE ALSO: NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for August 4 NYT Strands hint for today’s theme: Back to school

The words are classroom-related.

Today’s NYT Strands theme plainly explained

These words are things students need.

NYT Strands spangram hint: Is it vertical or horizontal?

Today's NYT Strands spangram is horizontal.

NYT Strands spangram answer today

Today's spangram is Supplies.

Featured Video For You Strands 101: How to win NYT’s latest word game NYT Strands word list for August 25

• Backpack

• Calculator

• Supplies

• Notebooks

• Folders

• Laptops

Looking for other daily online games? Mashable's Games page has more hints, and if you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now!

Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to the latest Strands.

Oh hey there! If you're here, it must be time for Wordle. As always, we're serving up our daily hints and tips to help you figure out today's answer.

If you just want to be told today's word, you can jump to the bottom of this article for today's Wordle solution revealed. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable SEE ALSO: NYT Connections today: Hints and answers for August 4 Where did Wordle come from?

Originally created by engineer Josh Wardle as a gift for his partner, Wordle rapidly spread to become an international phenomenon, with thousands of people around the globe playing every day. Alternate Wordle versions created by fans also sprang up, including battle royale Squabble, music identification game Heardle, and variations like Dordle and Quordle that make you guess multiple words at once. 

Wordle eventually became so popular that it was purchased by the New York Times, and TikTok creators even livestream themselves playing.

What's the best Wordle starting word?

The best Wordle starting word is the one that speaks to you. But if you prefer to be strategic in your approach, we have a few ideas to help you pick a word that might help you find the solution faster. One tip is to select a word that includes at least two different vowels, plus some common consonants like S, T, R, or N.

What happened to the Wordle archive?

The entire archive of past Wordle puzzles was originally available for anyone to enjoy whenever they felt like it, but it was later taken down, with the website's creator stating it was done at the request of the New York Times. However, the New York Times then rolled out its own Wordle Archive, available only to NYT Games subscribers.

Is Wordle getting harder?

It might feel like Wordle is getting harder, but it actually isn't any more difficult than when it first began. You can turn on Wordle's Hard Mode if you're after more of a challenge, though.

SEE ALSO: NYT's The Mini crossword answers for August 4, 2025 Here's a subtle hint for today's Wordle answer:

Amusement.

Does today's Wordle answer have a double letter?

There are no recurring letters.

Today's Wordle is a 5-letter word that starts with...

Today's Wordle starts with the letter M.

SEE ALSO: Wordle-obsessed? These are the best word games to play IRL. The Wordle answer today is...

Get your last guesses in now, because it's your final chance to solve today's Wordle before we reveal the solution.

Drumroll please!

The solution to today's Wordle is...

MIRTH.

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be a new Wordle for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for August 4

Reporting by Chance Townsend, Caitlin Welsh, Sam Haysom, Amanda Yeo, Shannon Connellan, Cecily Mauran, Mike Pearl, and Adam Rosenberg contributed to this article.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to the latest Wordle.

Pips is the newest game in the New York Times catalogue. Released in August 2025, the new game puts a unique spin on dominoes, creating a fun single-player experience that could become your next daily gaming habit.

Currently, if you're stuck, the game only offers to reveal the entire puzzle, forcing you to move onto the next difficulty level and start over. However, we have you covered! Below are piecemeal answers that will serve as hints so that you can find your way through each difficulty level.

How to play Pips

If you've ever played dominoes, you'll have a passing familiarity for how Pips is played. Like dominoes, the tiles are placed vertically or horizontally and connect with each other. The main difference between a traditional game of dominoes and Pips is the color-coded conditions you have to address. The touching tiles don't necessarily have to match.

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for August 25, 2025

The conditions you have to meet are specific to the color-coded spaces. For example, if it provides a single number, every side of a tile in that space must add up to the number provided. It is possible – and common – for only half a tile to be within a color-coded space.

Here are common examples you'll run into across the difficulty levels:

• Number: All the pips in this space must add up to the number.

• Equal: Every domino half in this space must be the same number of pips.

• Not Equal: Every domino half in this space must have a completely different number of pips.

• Less than: Every domino half in this space must add up to less than the number.

• Greater than: Every domino half in this space must add up to more than the number.

If an area does not have any color coding, it means there are no conditions on the portions of dominoes within those spaces.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for August 24, 2025 Easy difficulty hints, answers for Aug. 25

Number (2): Everything in this space must add up to 2. The answer is 2-5, placed vertically.

Number (15): Everything in this space must add up to 15. The answer is 5-3, placed horizontally; 2-5, placed vertically; 5-1, placed horizontally

Number (3): Everything in this space must add up to 3. The answer is 5-1, placed horizontally; 1-1, placed vertically.

Medium difficulty hints, answers for Aug. 25

Not equal: The domino halves in this space must be different. The answer is 4-3, placed horizontally; 4-1, placed horizontally.

Less than (2): Everything in this space must add up to less than 2. The answer is 4-1, placed horizontally.

Equal (5): The domino halves in this space must be 5. The answer is 5-5, placed vertically.

Equal (0): The domino halves in this space must be 0. The answer is 0-6, placed vertically; 0-5, placed vertically.

Equal (5): The domino halves in this dark blue space must be 5. The answer is 0-5, placed vertically; 5-2, placed horizontally.

Hard difficulty hints, answers for Aug. 25

Number (1): The domino halves in this purple space must add up to 1. The answer is 1-3, placed vertically.

Equal (3): The domino halves in this red space must be 3. The answer is 1-3, placed vertically; 2-3, placed vertically; 0-3, placed horizontally; 3-4, placed vertically.

Equal (0): The domino halves in this light blue space must be 0. The answer is 0-0, placed vertically; 1-3, placed horizontally; 0-2, placed horizontally.

Number (1): The domino halves in this dark blue space must add up to 1. The answer is 5-1, placed vertically.

Equal (0): The domino halves in this light yellow space must be 4. The answer is 3-4, placed vertically; 4-4, placed vertically; 4-6, placed vertically.

Number (11): The domino halves in this green space must add up to 11. The answer is 0-5, placed vertically; 4-6, placed vertically.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Connections: Sports Edition is a new version of the popular New York Times word game that seeks to test the knowledge of sports fans.

Like the original Connections, the game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for the latest Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable What is Connections Sports Edition?

The NYT's latest daily word game has launched in association with The Athletic, the New York Times property that provides the publication's sports coverage. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

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Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

SEE ALSO: NYT Mini crossword answers, hints for August 25, 2025 Here's a hint for today's Connections Sports Edition categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: Handling the rock

• Green: Almost soccer teams

• Blue: Footballers

• Purple: Same second word

Featured Video For You Connections: How to play and how to win Here are today's Connections Sports Edition categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Basketball actions

• Green: Premier league nicknames, minus the S

• Blue: NFL kickers

• Purple: Words followed by "horse"

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections Sports Edition #336 is...

What is the answer to Connections Sports Edition today

• Basketball actions - DRIBBLE, PASS, PIVOT, SHOOT

• Premier League nicknames, minus the S - BEE, GUNNER, SPUR, TOFFEE

• NFL kickers - BASS, KOO, LUTZ, MOODY

• Words followed by "horse" - CHARLEY, DARK, RACE, WORK

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to the latest Connections.

The Mini is a bite-sized version of The New York Times' revered daily crossword. While the crossword is a lengthier experience that requires both knowledge and patience to complete, The Mini is an entirely different vibe.

With only a handful of clues to answer, the daily puzzle doubles as a speed-running test for many who play it.

So, when a tricky clue disrupts a player's flow, it can be frustrating! If you find yourself stumped playing The Mini — much like with Wordle and Connections — we have you covered.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable SEE ALSO: How to play Pips, the newest NYT game

Here are the clues and answers to NYT's The Mini for Monday, August 25, 2025:

AcrossBritish "bye-bye"

• The answer is Ta Ta.

Hearty gulp

• The answer is Swig.

It's been called the "City of Light" and the "City of Love"

• The answer is Paris.

Clark ___ a.k.a. Superman

• The answer is Kent.

Comedically risky

• The answer is Edgy.

DownBaking measure: Abbr.

• The answer is TSP.

Unable to sleep

• The answer is Awake.

Sleepy

• The answer is Tired.

"An extraordinary process whereby you become the person you always should have been," per David Bowie

• The answer is Aging.

Pig's home

• The answer is Sty.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Featured Video For You The Wordle Strategy used by the New York Times' Head of Games

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to the latest Mini Crossword.

If you like playing daily word games like Wordle, then Hurdle is a great game to add to your routine.

There are five rounds to the game. The first round sees you trying to guess the word, with correct, misplaced, and incorrect letters shown in each guess. If you guess the correct answer, it'll take you to the next hurdle, providing the answer to the last hurdle as your first guess. This can give you several clues or none, depending on the words. For the final hurdle, every correct answer from previous hurdles is shown, with correct and misplaced letters clearly shown.

An important note is that the number of times a letter is highlighted from previous guesses does necessarily indicate the number of times that letter appears in the final hurdle.

If you find yourself stuck at any step of today's Hurdle, don't worry! We have you covered.

SEE ALSO: Hurdle: Everything you need to know to find the answers Hurdle Word 1 hint

A South American dance.

SEE ALSO: Apple’s new M3 MacBook Air is $300 off at Amazon. And yes, I’m tempted. Hurdle Word 1 answer

TANGO

Hurdle Word 2 hint

Shy.

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for August 4, 2025 Hurdle Word 2 Answer

TIMID

Hurdle Word 3 hint

Solo.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for August 4 SEE ALSO: NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for August 4, 2025 Hurdle Word 3 answer

ALONE

Hurdle Word 4 hint

A beginning.

SEE ALSO: NYT Strands hints, answers for August 4 Hurdle Word 4 answer

BIRTH

Final Hurdle hint

A ceasefire.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Games available on Mashable Hurdle Word 5 answer

TRUCE

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

For the next few nights, the moon will be getting brighter and brighter until we reach the full moon. We're on day two of the lunar cycle, a series of eight unique phases of the moon's visibility. The whole cycle takes about 29.5 days, according to NASA, and these different phases happen as the Sun lights up different parts of the moon whilst it orbits Earth. 

So let's see what's happening with the moon tonight, Aug. 25.

What is today’s moon phase?

As of Monday, Aug. 25, the moon phase is Waxing Crescent, and only 5% will be lit up to us on Earth, according to NASA's Daily Moon Observation.

It's only day two of the lunar cycle, so there's still not enough of the moon lit up to see anything on its surface, so keen moon gazers will need to wait a few more days.

When is the next full moon?

The next full moon will be on Sept. 7. The last full moon was on Aug. 9.

What are moon phases?

According to NASA, moon phases are caused by the 29.5-day cycle of the moon’s orbit, which changes the angles between the Sun, Moon, and Earth. Moon phases are how the moon looks from Earth as it goes around us. We always see the same side of the moon, but how much of it is lit up by the Sun changes depending on where it is in its orbit. This is how we get full moons, half moons, and moons that appear completely invisible. There are eight main moon phases, and they follow a repeating cycle:

New Moon - The moon is between Earth and the sun, so the side we see is dark (in other words, it's invisible to the eye).

Waxing Crescent - A small sliver of light appears on the right side (Northern Hemisphere).

First Quarter - Half of the moon is lit on the right side. It looks like a half-moon.

Waxing Gibbous - More than half is lit up, but it’s not quite full yet.

Full Moon - The whole face of the moon is illuminated and fully visible.

Waning Gibbous - The moon starts losing light on the right side.

Last Quarter (or Third Quarter) - Another half-moon, but now the left side is lit.

Waning Crescent - A thin sliver of light remains on the left side before going dark again.

If you’re shopping for a car, some of the best deals are actually on used models. Over the past five years, hybrids have surged in popularity, offering efficiency and perks that traditional gas cars just can’t match.

If you've encountered the word "Boolean" but aren't quite sure what it means, this is the guide for you! From definitions of key terms to easy-to-follow examples, here's everything you need to know about Boolean logic in Microsoft Excel.

Spotify, Apple Music, or whatever service you use is getting more fragmented and more expensive. You're probably listening to the same set of albums over and over, like most people, too.

As if the proliferation and sophistication of scams on the internet weren't already enough, AI technologies are already making them more common, and harder to spot. Old scams can now be automated en masse, and entirely new scams are possible thanks to the latest AI tech.

“Horror movie” is such a broad term. You've got your supernatural films involving ghastly ghosts and demons, undead zombies, psychological mind-jobs, and “elevated” cinematic horror, like that of Jordan Peele or Ari Aster, designed for more refined horror fans. As for me, I prefer slasher movies—the ones where a psycho killer lets loose on a group of helpless victims, picking them off one at a time.

Nobody truly knows what happens when we die, but it’s always fun to speculate. There might be a heaven, hell, or something much stranger beyond our comprehension. Imagining the afterlife in film is about as enticing and bountiful with ideas as envisioning the darkest depths of outer space.

If you're a documentary lover, Netflix served up a treat in Summer 2025, with eight installments of fascinating tales that went viral with Trainwreck. From malicious mayors to catastrophic cruises, here's my ranking of each episode in the series.

Whether you’re a gamer, work from home, or just spend a lot of time at your PC, you likely sit at your desk for hours each day. That’s why it’s worth making your setup as cozy and convenient as possible.

I’m writing these words from my Galaxy Z Fold 6 running a beta test version of Samsung’s upcoming One UI interface. This time around, there’s just one feature in particular that made me willing to take a chance on buggy software just to get my hands on it.

Robotaxis are braving the notoriously hectic New York City streets, as Waymo wins coveted approval to test its autonomous vehicles.

The self-driving ride-share company has been granted the first pilot permit by the city of New York. This permits the company to train its camera, LIDAR, and RADAR systems on the busy NYC grid. Other autonomous vehicle companies, including competitor Tesla, have made aggressive pushes into the metropolitan area in a race to own the market in major cities.

SEE ALSO: Apple eyes Google Gemini for Siri upgrade

The permit allows Waymo to deploy eight vehicles (Jaguar I-Pace SUVs) throughout Manhattan and Downtown Brooklyn from now until late September. The vehicles will be occupied by a safety operator who will maintain constant contact with the steering wheel. Waymo is not approved to test with passengers under the city's taxi and limousine licensing requirements, and had to submit additional plans to the city's emergency services system and Department of Transportation to get approval. The company told TechCrunch it plans to begin testing its fleet "immediately."

Last month, Waymo announced it has plans for a robotaxi launch in Dallas in 2026, following the tongue-in-cheek deployment of Elon Musk-led Tesla robotaxis earlier this year. Waymo, a leader in the space, already operates fleets in San Francisco, Austin, Phoenix, and Los Angeles. For several years, Robotaxi companies have been gradually piloting autonomous vehicle services in major cities (predominantly California), but few have gone fully to market.

If you primarily play online games, your headset is a crucial piece of gear. It provides a real advantage by helping you pinpoint where your enemies are. However, the truth is that a “gaming” headset isn’t necessarily the best tool for the job. Here's why.

Insiders say that Apple is in talks to use Google Gemini to beef up its already AI-enhanced iOS assistant.

First reported by Bloomberg News, the anticipated Siri upgrade — now slated for a potential 2026 release — may come as a customized LLM powered by Google's own Gemini chatbot. It's the latest in Apple's months-long exploration of external partnerships.

SEE ALSO: Netflix spells out generative AI guidelines for moviemakers

Sources familiar with the company told Bloomberg that Apple approached Google's parent company, Alphabet Inc., about a custom model, and Google, in turn, has been testing a model that can run on Apple's servers.

In June, rumors circulated that the iPhone creator may shelve its plans to build an in-house LLM to power a better Siri in addition to its Apple Intelligence features, and was instead seeking a partnership with either OpenAI's ChatGPT or Anthropic's Claude. Internally, the company has been weighing the pros and cons of an internal Siri AI (dubbed the "Linwood" project) versus an external technology (named "Glenwood").

At the time, Apple's interest in an outsourced Siri AI seemed like a defeat amid a still-expanding AI boom, as the company's rivals poached Apple's own leading AI talent to expand their efforts. But, in just the past month, other Big Tech companies have also decided to scale back their AI investments — a shift that some say signals an end to the AI "bubble."

Neither Apple nor Google confirmed the possible partnership, although both have signaled that a Gemini integration with Apple devices may be on the horizon in addition to their existing Search collaboration. The integration would be similar to previous deals between Apple and ChatGPT.