Looking for help with today’s NYT Connections puzzle? You’ve come to the right place. We’ve got all the hints, clues, and answers you need to solve Connections #979 for February 14, 2026.
What is NYT Connections?
Connections is a popular daily word game from the New York Times. The puzzle challenges players to find common threads between 16 words and group them into four categories.
Each category has a different difficulty level. Yellow is the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple being the hardest.
How to Play Connections
The rules are simple:
- Find four words that share something in common
- Group all 16 words into four categories
- You get four mistakes before the game ends
- Categories can be anything from movie titles to types of food
Hints for Today’s Puzzle (February 14, 2026)
Need a gentle push in the right direction? Here are some hints for each category:
Yellow Category: Think about things that go up or increase
Green Category: These words describe bumps or bulges
Blue Category: Classic characters from a famous actor’s career
Purple Category: All of these words can come before a fresh herb
Today’s Connections Categories
Still stuck? Here are the actual category names:
- Yellow: Uptick
- Green: Protuberance
- Blue: Tom Hanks roles
- Purple: Words before “Mint”
Connections #979 Answers for February 14, 2026
Ready for the full solution? Here are today’s answers:
Yellow – Uptick
- HIKE
- JUMP
- RISE
- SPIKE
Green – Protuberance
- BUMP
- HUMP
- LUMP
- MOUND
Blue – Tom Hanks Roles
- GUMP (Forrest Gump)
- PHILLIPS (Captain Phillips)
- SULLY (Sully)
- WOODY (Toy Story)
Purple – Words Before “Mint”
- BREATH (Breath Mint)
- JUNIOR (Junior Mint)
- PEPPER (Peppermint)
- SPEAR (Spearmint)