Start with the spoiler-free clues. Reveal the answers only when you've truly given up.
A direction for each group — no names given.
What kind of thinking each group asks for.
Pointed nudges on the words built to fool you.
Every Connections board plants a few decoys. Here are today's, and why they pull you the wrong way.
LINE could be mistaken for belonging with SCHOOL (as in 'school line' or 'line of students') or with SWINDLE (as in a line of deceptive talk).
STRAIN might look like it belongs with SWINDLE (financial strain) or CONDUIT (a strainer is like a pipe), but it's actually a tea-making verb.
STIFF could be thought of as a school modifier (stiff test) or a conduit (stiff pipe), but it's a verb meaning to cheat someone.
DUCT, LINE, MAIN, and PIPE are all types of passages or tubes that carry something—like air, water, or electricity. The group is straightforward and literal.
FLEECE, HOSE, SQUEEZE, and STIFF each have a slang meaning as verbs for cheating or swindling someone out of money. The group relies on less common definitions.
BOIL, POUR, STEEP, and STRAIN are all actions you take when preparing a cup of tea. The category is specific but not immediately obvious among the other words.
GRADE, GRAMMAR, HIGH, and PRIMARY can all precede 'school' to form common compound terms: grade school, grammar school, high school, primary school. The connection is about word pairs.
a textbook decoy
requires lateral thinking
