NYT Connections Reveals October 13 Puzzle Groups and Answers

The New York Times Connections puzzle for Tuesday, October 13, 2026, challenges players to sort 16 words into four groups based on shared meanings and word associations. Puzzle No. 1220 features categories involving personal style, ways to connect objects, traditional sports championship prizes, and expressions formed with the word loose, according to Insider Gaming. The 16 words are EYE, LASH, LIPS, JACKET, TIE, SENSE, CHANGE, BELT, RING, TASTE, CUP, HITCH, CANNON, TETHER, FLAIR, and ENDS.

Each word belongs to one of four groups containing four entries, with overlapping meanings making some combinations more difficult to identify. Insider Gaming identifies the yellow group as qualities associated with a trendsetter, the green group as methods of joining things together, the blue group as classic sports championship prizes, and the purple group as words that can follow loose.

The yellow answers are EYE, FLAIR, SENSE, and TASTE. These words can describe someone's style, aesthetic judgment, or ability to recognize and appreciate particular qualities.

The green category contains HITCH, LASH, TETHER, and TIE. Each word can refer to fastening, securing, or connecting objects, although the words have other meanings in everyday usage. The blue group consists of BELT, CUP, JACKET, and RING. Insider Gaming classifies these as traditional sports championship prizes, linking the terms through their association with sporting achievements and competition.

The purple group brings together CANNON, CHANGE, ENDS, and LIPS. Each can follow the word loose to form a familiar expression or compound term, making this category dependent on recognizing a shared phrase rather than a single definition. Mashable's October 13 coverage provides individual definitions for all 16 words, offering another way to approach the puzzle without immediately revealing its categories. Its explanations highlight the multiple meanings that can complicate word-association challenges.

For example, EYE refers to the organ used for seeing, while LASH and TIE can both describe ways of fastening things together. SENSE refers to awareness, and TASTE can describe the ability to identify flavors or a person's preferences. Other entries also have distinct everyday meanings.

JACKET refers to outerwear, BELT is commonly worn around the waist, RING can refer to jewelry, and CUP can describe a drinking vessel or a trophy. HITCH can refer to a type of knot, while TETHER describes attaching one thing to another. FLAIR refers to distinctive style, CHANGE means altering a state or condition, and ENDS can refer to the terminal parts of something.

According to Insider Gaming, Connections presents a new grid of 16 words each day and asks players to identify four sets of four. The categories use color coding in increasing order of difficulty: yellow, green, blue, and purple.

Players have four incorrect guesses available before the game ends. The puzzle resets at midnight in each player's local time zone, allowing a new daily challenge to begin.