Stuck on NYT Connections 810 for August 29, 2025? Get strategic hints and complete answers for all four categories. Master today’s word association challenge with our expert guide.
Today’s Connection Challenge Breaking Your Brain?
Connections 810 served up quite the mental workout today! If you’re staring at those 16 words wondering how they could possibly connect into four neat groups, you’re definitely not flying solo on this one. Sometimes the categories jump out immediately, other times you find yourself second-guessing every possible connection.
Today’s puzzle has some particularly sneaky groupings that might have you scratching your head. Let’s work through some strategic hints first, then reveal the complete solution for those who need it.
Quick Connections Refresher
For newcomers to the NYT Connections world, you’re working with 16 words that need to be sorted into four groups of four. Each group shares a common theme, and categories are color-coded by difficulty: yellow (easiest), green (easy), blue (medium), and purple (hardest). You get four mistakes before the puzzle defeats you, so strategic thinking beats random guessing every time.
Strategic Hints by Difficulty Level
Yellow Category (Easiest) – Hint
Think about different ways to describe a well-known person. These are all terms you might use when talking about someone famous or important – whether it’s a celebrity, politician, or public figure.
Green Category (Easy) – Hint
Consider things that grow or expand. These words all describe the action of something getting bigger, rising up, or expanding in size over time.
Blue Category (Medium) – Hint
Focus on places where you stop to fuel up your car. Think about where you’d go when your gas tank is running low – some are convenience stores, others are petroleum companies.
Purple Category (Hardest) – Hint
This one requires completing a common phrase. All four words can follow the same two-word pattern to create familiar expressions or terms you’ve definitely heard before.
The Complete Answer Breakdown
Yellow Category: FAMOUS PERSON
Words: FIGURE, NAME, PERSONALITY, STAR
This category covers different ways we refer to notable people. A “figure” in politics, a big “name” in entertainment, a television “personality,” or a movie “star” – all describe someone with public recognition and influence.
Green Category: INCREASE
Words: BALLOON, MOUNT, MUSHROOM, WAX
These words all mean to grow or expand. Costs can “balloon,” pressure might “mount,” problems tend to “mushroom,” and enthusiasm can “wax” stronger. Each represents something getting progressively larger or more intense.
Blue Category: PLACES THAT SELL GAS
Words: 7-ELEVEN, CHEVRON, GULF, SHELL
Your standard gas station lineup! 7-Eleven combines convenience store shopping with fuel, while Chevron, Gulf, and Shell are major petroleum companies with stations nationwide. All places you’d stop when the fuel gauge hits E.
Purple Category: ___ SPLIT
Words: 7-10, BANANA, LICKETY, STOCK
The trickiest category required completing phrases: “7-10 split” (bowling), “banana split” (dessert), “lickety split” (very quickly), and “stock split” (financial term). Each word pairs with “split” to create a completely different meaning.
Why Today’s Puzzle Was Particularly Challenging
The Purple category definitely earned its difficulty rating today. “7-10 split” might have thrown off non-bowling fans, while “lickety split” is more of an older expression that younger players might not immediately recognize. The connection wasn’t obvious until you started thinking about phrase completion.
The overlap between categories added extra complexity too. “STAR” could theoretically fit with space-related words if that had been a category, and “MUSHROOM” might seem like it belongs with food items rather than growth verbs.
Connections Strategy That Actually Works
Start with Obvious Groups: Look for the most straightforward category first. Today’s gas stations were pretty clear-cut once you spotted the pattern.
Watch for Multiple Meanings: Words like “MOUNT” can mean a mountain or the action of climbing/increasing. Consider all possible definitions.
Think About Wordplay: The Purple category often involves puns, phrases, or word combinations. If you’re stuck, try thinking about expressions or idioms.
Use Process of Elimination: Once you’ve identified one or two solid groups, the remaining words become much easier to categorize.
The Psychology Behind Today’s Groupings
Connections editors are masters at creating overlap and misdirection. Today’s puzzle had several potential red herrings:
- “FIGURE” could relate to numbers or shapes
- “SHELL” might seem like it belongs with nature words
- “STAR” has multiple meanings across different contexts
The key is staying flexible in your thinking and not getting locked into your first instinct about what a word means.
Beyond Today’s Challenge
Whether you solved Connections 810 without hints or needed the complete breakdown, you’ve sharpened your pattern recognition and word association skills. Each daily puzzle teaches us something new about language, lateral thinking, and the creative ways words can connect.
Looking for more daily word challenges? Check out today’s other puzzle adventures:
- NYT Strands 544 Answer – Today’s geological rock formation theme
- Quordle Answers – Four simultaneous word puzzles
- Wordle 1532 Answer – The classic five-letter challenge
- Worldle Answer – Geography shape guessing game
The beauty of Connections lies in those “aha!” moments when the pattern suddenly becomes clear. Today’s “___ split” category was particularly satisfying once the phrase completion clicked into place.
Tomorrow brings Connections 811 with four completely new categories to decode. Will it feature more wordplay, cultural references, or straightforward categorical thinking? The only way to find out is to keep playing and keep that mental flexibility sharp!
Ready for your next word association adventure?
