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Today's NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for April 16, #1040

Here are some hints and the answers for the NYT Connections puzzle for April 16, No. 1,040.

Headshot of Gael Cooper
Headshot of Gael Cooper
Gael Cooper
CNET editor Gael Fashingbauer Cooper, a journalist and pop-culture junkie, is co-author of "Whatever Happened to Pudding Pops? The Lost Toys, Tastes and Trends of the '70s and '80s," as well as "The Totally Sweet '90s." She's been a journalist since 1989, working at Mpls.St.Paul Magazine, Twin Cities Sidewalk, the Minneapolis Star Tribune, and NBC News Digital. She's Gen X in birthdate, word and deed. If Marathon candy bars ever come back, she'll be first in line.
Expertise Breaking news, entertainment, lifestyle, travel, food, shopping and deals, product reviews, money and finance, video games, pets, history, books, technology history, and generational studies Credentials
  • Co-author of two Gen X pop-culture encyclopedia for Penguin Books. Won "Headline Writer of the Year"​ award for 2017, 2014 and 2013 from the American Copy Editors Society. Won first place in headline writing from the 2013 Society for Features Journalism.
Gael Cooper
2 min read
NYT word games connections

Read on for today's Connections answers.

James Martin/CNET

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today's Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.


Today's NYT Connections puzzle is tricky. I did love the blue category, which references a favorite Batman character. Read on for clues and today's Connections answers.

The Times has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including the number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today's Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today's Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Make fun of.

Green group hint: Brr, so cold in here!

Blue group hint: Batman's rival.

Purple group hint: Connected with learning.

Answers for today's Connections groups

Yellow group: Tease.

Green group: Thermostat settings.

Blue group: Features of a Catwoman costume.

Purple group: Training ____.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today's Connections answers?

completed NYT Connections puzzle for April 16, 2026

The completed NYT Connections puzzle for April 16, 2026.

NYT/Screenshot by CNET

The yellow words in today's Connections

The theme is tease. The four answers are needle, rib, ride and roast.

The green words in today's Connections

The theme is thermostat settings. The four answers are auto, cool, fan and heat.

The blue words in today's Connections

The theme is features of a Catwoman costume. The four answers are bodysuit, claws, mask and whip.

The purple words in today's Connections

The theme is training ____. The four answers are bra, camp, day and wheels.