If you’re looking for the Connections answer for Tuesday, December 26, 2023, read on—I’ll share some clues, tips, and strategies, and finally the solutions to all four categories. Along the way, I’ll explain the meanings of the trickier words and we’ll learn how everything fits together. Beware, there are spoilers below for December 26, NYT Connections #198! Read on if you want some hints (and then the answer) to today’s Connections game. 

If you want an easy way to come back to our Connections hints every day, bookmark this page. You can also find our past hints there as well, in case you want to know what you missed in a previous puzzle.

Below, I’ll give you some oblique hints at today’s Connections answers. And farther down the page, I’ll reveal the themes and the answers. Scroll slowly and take just the hints you need!

Credit: Connections/NYT

Does today’s Connections game require any special knowledge?

Publishing or bookbinding nerds (you know who you are) might have an easier time than the rest of us with one category, but if that’s not you, you’ll probably figure it out anyway.

Hints for the themes in today’s Connections puzzle

Here are some spoiler-free hints for the groupings in today’s Connections:

• Yellow category - You’ll find these in addresses.

• Green category - This category is paper thin.

• Blue category - Don’t let these hold you back.

• Purple category - This one is as plain as the nose on your face!

Does today’s Connections game involve any wordplay?

The purple category is not exactly a fill-in-the-blank, but all four words can fit into a similar phrase. 

Ready to hear the answers? Keep scrolling if you want a little more help.

BEWARE: Spoilers follow for today’s Connections puzzle!

We’re about to give away some of the answers. Scroll slowly if you don’t want the whole thing spoiled. (The full solution is a bit further down.)

What are the ambiguous words in today’s Connections?

• A CURB may be at the edge of a STREET, but today you want to think of the verb that means to LIMIT.

• Shakespeare’s plays famously appeared in FOLIOs, but that word can also apply to a large sheet of paper or parchment used in a book.

• You may have to HOLD your nose to get through some of these categories. Just saying.

What are the categories in today’s Connections?

• Yellow: ROAD NAMES

• Green: PAPER IN A BOOK

• Blue: RESTRAIN

• Purple: THINGS YOU CAN DO TO YOUR NOSE

DOUBLE BEWARE: THE SOLUTION IS BELOW

Ready to learn the answers to today’s Connections puzzle? I give them all away below.

What are the yellow words in today’s Connections?

The yellow grouping is considered to be the most straightforward. The theme for today’s yellow group is ROAD NAMES and the words are: ALLEY, DRIVE, LANE, STREET.

What are the green words in today’s Connections?

The green grouping is supposed to be the second-easiest. The theme for today’s green category is PAPER IN A BOOK and the words are: FOLIO, LEAF, PAGE, SHEET.

What are the blue words in today’s Connections?

The blue grouping is the second-hardest. The theme for today’s blue category is RESTRAIN and the words are: CHECK, CURB, LIMIT, STEM.

What are the purple words in today’s Connections?

The purple grouping is considered to be the hardest. The theme for today’s purple category is THINGS YOU CAN DO TO YOUR NOSE and the words are: BLOW, HOLD, PICK, THUMB.

How I solved today’s Connections

I got the nose words first! 🟪 I also wanted “in your LANE” and “up your ALLEY” to go together as ways of defining someone’s LIMITs, but that didn’t look promising enough to submit. Fortunately there was another way to use CURB and LIMIT, 🟦leaving me with the more obvious SHEETs of paper 🟩 and STREET names. 🟨

Connections 
Puzzle #198
🟪🟪🟪🟪
🟦🟦🟦🟦
🟩🟩🟩🟩
🟨🟨🟨🟨

How to play Connections

I have a full guide to playing Connections, but here’s a refresher on the rules:

First, find the Connections game either on the New York Times website or in their Crossword app. You’ll see a game board with 16 tiles, each with one word or phrase. Your job is to select a group of four tiles that have something in common. Often they are all the same type of thing (for example: RAIN, SLEET, HAIL, and SNOW are all types of wet weather) but sometimes there is wordplay involved (for example, BUCKET, GUEST, TOP TEN, and WISH are all types of lists: bucket list, guest list, and so on).

Select four items and hit the Submit button. If you guessed correctly, the category and color will be revealed. (Yellow is easiest, followed by green, then blue, then purple.) If your guess was incorrect, you’ll get a chance to try again.

You win when you’ve correctly identified all four groups. But if you make four mistakes before you finish, the game ends and the answers are revealed.

How to win Connections

The most important thing to know to win Connections is that the groupings are designed to be tricky. Expect to see overlapping groups. For example, one puzzle seemed to include six breakfast foods: BACON, EGG, PANCAKE, OMELET, WAFFLE, and CEREAL. But BACON turned out to be part of a group of painters along with CLOSE, MUNCH, and WHISTLER, and EGG was in a group of things that come by the dozen (along with JUROR, ROSE, and MONTH). So don’t hit “submit” until you’ve confirmed that your group of four contains only those four things.

If you’re stuck, another strategy is to look at the words that seem to have no connection to the others. If all that comes to mind when you see WHISTLER is the painting nicknamed “Whistler’s Mother,” you might be on to something. When I solved that one, I ended up googling whether there was a painter named Close, because Close didn’t fit any of the obvious themes, either.

Another way to win when you’re stuck is, obviously, to read a few helpful hints–which is why we share these pointers every day. Check back tomorrow for the next puzzle!

The Federal Bureau of Investigations is investigating violent threats made against Colorado’s Supreme Court justices who removed former President Donald Trump off the state’s ballot.

On Monday, the FBI released a statement claiming it was working with local law enforcement to assist in investigating the threats made against the justices who removed the Republican frontrunner from running for public office.

Earlier this month, Colorado’s Supreme Court made a 4-3 decision ruling that Trump is not eligible to become president again after engaging in insurrection on January 6th, 2021, citing the 14th amendment.

“The FBI is aware of the situation and working with local law enforcement,” said FBI Public Affairs Officer Vikki Migoya in a statement to CNN. “We will vigorously pursue investigations of any threat or use of violence committed by someone who uses extremist views to justify their actions regardless of motivation.”

State law enforcement previously told CNN that threats made against judges would be investigated and handled by local authorities.

Per CNN:

In addition to the federal response, state and local law enforcement officials and non-government research groups have been monitoring rhetoric on extremist online forums for signs it might translate to tangible threats to public officials.

The names of the four Colorado Supreme Court justices who ruled to disqualify Trump from the ballot have appeared frequently in “incendiary” posts on such forums with calls to expose the judges’ personal data, according to an analysis of the online chatter prepared by one non-partisan research organization for US law enforcement agencies that was obtained by CNN.

While the analysis found no specific threats to the judges, it said “there remains a risk of lone actor or small group violence or other illegal activities in response to the ruling.”

One user on a far-right, pro-Trump website posted, “All f— robed rats must f— hang,” an apparent reference to the Colorado justices.

Following the decision, Trump and his supporters criticized the justices claiming the former president cannot be barred from running for office on the grounds of insurrection because he’s never been charged criminally for the offense. Trump faces four criminal indictments in four separate jurisdictions

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited troops in northern Gaza on Christmas morning where vowed to continue the war with Hamas “until the end” despite calls for a ceasefire.

The visit came 24-hours after one of the deadliest nights in the city where dozens were killed by an Israeli airstrike on a refugee camp in central Gaza on Sunday, according to the Hamas-controlled health ministry.

Netanyahu dismissed calls from western allies to halt fighting, while claiming the remaining Israeli hostages would only be freed if Israel continued it’s military siege of Gaza.

“Whoever talks about stopping, there is no such thing,” Netanyahu told Israeli troops on Christmas morning, according to The Standard. “We are not stopping. The war will continue until the end, until we finish it, no less.”

Recently, Egypt has proposed a ceasefire to the leaders of Israel and Hamas that includes Israel withdrawing from the region in exchange for the remaining hostages. Moreover, the deal calls for the creation of a Palestinian government to overlook Gaza and the West Bank.

However, Netanyahu’s recent comments indicate that Israel is not interested in a peace agreement. Meanwhile, a Hamas representative has stated the group will not agree to a temporary truce, according to Axios.

Since the October conflict began, more than 20,000 Palestinian have been killed following the Hamas’ attack on Israel that resulted in 1,200 deaths and 240 hostages

It’s the long Christmas weekend, so most Americans have probably spent the last few days coping with the holiday season hustle and bustle in one way or another. For one family though, their holiday plans took a sharp turn because of an incident that resembled the Home Alone franchise way too well.

Spirit Airlines released an apologetic statement on Saturday over a mishap last week where they put an unaccompanied 6-year-old child on the wrong plane.

The panic began for Maria Ramos at Southwest Florida International Airport in Fort Myers, where she awaited her grandson as he was supposed to fly in from Philadelphia International Airport. Unfortunately, the child was somehow misplaced on a flight to Orlando, forcing Ramos to make a 160 mile drive to go pick him up.

“The child was always under the care and supervision of a Spirit Team Member, and as soon as we discovered the error, we took immediate steps to communicate with the family and reconnect them,” the airline said in a statement to CNN. While the airline didn’t say anything about how this mix-up happened, they added that they “take the safety and responsibility of transporting all of our Guests seriously and are conducting an internal investigation. We apologize to the family for this experience.”

Ramos spoke with WINK-TV about the ordeal, demanding answers while recalling how her grandson called her when he landed to tell her where he was. As the story made its way online, observers commented that this sounds very much like the plot of Home Alone 2, where Kevin McCallister accidentally boards a flight to New York after getting separated from his family as they are about to fly to Florida.

for anyone who thought Home Alone wouldn’t be possible in 2023, your crucial mistake was forgetting Spirit Airlines exists https://t.co/w75tF6wIv0

— Washington Post TikTok Dad (@davejorgenson) December 25, 2023

Spirit Airlines. Making Home Alone come true. https://t.co/8RvZJkaZyx pic.twitter.com/YFAKKb0Zp6

— Rob Lydick (@roblydick) December 25, 2023

“Home Alone 2 could never happen in 2023”

My friend have you considered: Spirit Airlines https://t.co/oXpZztQxqa

— Matt (@MattBerry05) December 24, 2023

Watch above via CBS.

Former President Donald Trump said a lot of controversial things during his term, but one stands out for its grinchiness — the moment five years ago when he seemed to dash a young child’s belief in Santa Claus during a phone call set up by the NORAD Santa Tracker.

“Are you still a believer in Santa? Because at seven, it’s marginal, right?” the ex-president asked a 7-year-old named Collman Lloyd during that infamous Christmas Eve 2018 call, set up by the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) as part of their annual holiday online effort to track the whereabouts of Claus and his reindeer transports.

“Collman’s response, though inaudible to the press, left Trump with a chuckle and a smile,” according to a report by CNN.

Lloyd, identified as a South Carolina girl by The Post and Courier, told the paper that she had never heard the word “marginal” before — and a video her family shared showed her telling Trump “yes, sir” when he asked her if she still believed in Santa.

Nevertheless, the video clip of Trump’s call with Lloyd went viral in 2018 and generated a new round of posts this year, on the five-year anniversary of the call.

Yashar Ali’s post on The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter, which has drawn as of the time of publication nearly 1 million views, called the call “Trump’s funniest moment” and declared he would “never apologize for thinking this is funny so don’t waste your time.”

Watch above, via Twitter.

Screenshot via Orlando International Airport (MCO) on Facebook.

The Orlando International Airport set up a Festivus pole for weary travelers on Saturday, complete with an invitation to air grievances — and a request to please not use the pole for dancing.

Festivus, of course, is the December 23 holiday popularized by a 1997 episode of Seinfeld that includes celebrations that include a Festivus pole (unadorned because Frank Constanza says tinsel is “distracting”), airing of grievances, and feats of strength.

MCO, which draws its airport code from its previous identity as McCoy AFB, set up the pole along with a comment box where travelers could submit their grievances, posting photos on its social media accounts and getting lots of positive comments in response.

A closer view of the sign shows the text urges travelers, please “no demonstrations of Feats of Strength at the airport,” and then — perhaps cognizant of the ever-present headline-creating existence of Florida Man (and Woman) — “Please do not climb on the Festivus Pole. The Festivus Pole is not a Dancing Pole.”

Screenshot via Orlando International Airport (MCO).

In other Festivus-related happenings, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) took to The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter for his annual airing of grievances, once again posting a thread bashing former Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) “for being too much of a swampy establishment critter even for Congressional leadership,” mocking Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) for his “many failed attempts to ban TikTok,” hoping that Dr. Anthony Fauci would be in prison by next Christmas, and other assorted grumblings about “neocons” and wasteful government spending.

UPDATE: Edited to add perhaps the most famous Florida celebration of Festivus, this pole constructed from Pabst Blue Ribbon beer cans that adorned the Florida Capitol lobby in 2013.

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Progressive stalwart Cenk Uygur kicked up a firestorm of anger on Friday evening with a tweet accusing Israel of killing more civilians in Gaza than Syrian dictator Bashar Al-Assad did in Aleppo. Aleppo, a city of over 2 million people, suffered large-scale destruction during the Syrian Civil War, in which pro-democracy factions tried to overthrow the totalitarian Assad regime.

“Bashar Al-Assad in four years of brutalizing Aleppo didn’t kill as many civilians as Israel has in two months. Russians killed fewer Ukranian civilians in Maruipol. Israel has killed 20 times the civilians Hamas did. Netanyahu is one of the biggest terrorists of our lifetimes,” wrote The Young Turks host on X/Twitter.

Uyugur’s comment comes as the death toll in Gaza continues to quickly rise and, according to Hamas-linked officials, it had passed 20,000 this week. While most critics did not take issue with Uygur highlighting the suffering in Gaza, he was roundly slammed for suggesting that atrocities in Syria in Ukraine were somehow lesser.

“‘Less people died in Aleppo’ is factually incorrect according to the Gaza Health Ministry’s own numbers,” wrote the American Enterprise Institute’s Kareem Rifai, adding:

The UN acknowledges that the official Mariupol death toll is a severe undercount.

But most importantly: WHY do we feel the need to erase Syrian and Ukrainian suffering?

Notably, according to the UN the death toll in Aleppo was well over 50,000 in a conflict that left some 350,000 people dead (many estimates put the total death toll over 500,000) and left Assad in power to continue to brutalize his people. The war also created a mass refugee crisis with over 7 million Syrians being forced to flee their country. “The greatest number of documented killings was recorded in the Governorate of Aleppo, with 51,731 named individuals killed,” read a statement from the Office of the High Commissioner For Human Rights at the UN in September of 2021.

Assad’s crimes against humanity have long been documented by foreign governments, the UN, and other watchdog groups. On October 5th, CNN’s Clarissa Ward highlighted a harrowing report on how Assad’s regime today continues to use hospitals to torture and punish its critics at home. “Devastating report by @RohitKachrooITV as Assad continues his rehabilitation,” Ward wrote on Twitter, sharing a clip captioned, “A Damascus hospital has become a secret ‘slaughterhouse’ for Syrians who oppose President Bashar al-Assad, where doctors and nurses use medical equipment to taunt, torture and kill activists during check-ups.”

Other critics of Uygur’s tweet were quick to note that Assad also attacked and starved out Palestinian refugee camps in Syria during the civil war.

“Israel is undoubtedly committing war crimes and ethnic cleansing here and the west should be ashamed for enabling it but no it’s not as bad as Mariupol. And Bashar Al-Assad has murdered far more people including Palestinians in refugee camps,” one user wrote in reply.

The Times of Israel reported in March of 2014 on the issue with an analysis titled, “Assad is starving Palestinians to death in a Syrian camp, and nobody cares.”

A conservative attorney who writes under the pseudonym AG Hamilton also noted that Uygur makes no distinction between Hamas fighters and civilians killed in Gaza. “The lying is bad enough, but the refusal to place any responsibility on the terrorist group that started this war and has actively encouraged/ensured the maximization of civilian deaths is deplorable. That’s why Cenk gets embarrassed any time he debates this topic and that’s why no one serious pays attention to him,” Hamilton concluded in a lengthy reply.

Below are some more replies to Uygur’s tweet:

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