Connections Hint
Puzzle #1190 · September 13, 2026

NYT Connections Hints for September 13, 2026

Start with the spoiler-free hints. Go deeper only when you need to. Reveal answers on your own terms.

Sunday, September 13, 2026
Get the hintsSpoiler-free · three levels ↓ Skip to answersJust give me the solution →
Today’s 16 Puzzle Words
Tap any word to see how it’s used in this puzzle
GARFIELDEXCESSMADISONPORRIDGEFLACCIDPARAMOUNTEMPTYCLEVELANDSAGGINGHEATHCLIFFDOUBLESPEAKSLACKGRANTDROOPYKEWPIEODIE

Spoiler-Free Hints

Three levels — warmer as you read down
i Ultra safe

A direction for each group — no names given.

  • These words all describe a similar state of lost tension.
  • These have the ring of names from history books.
  • Something about their spoken sound hides a quiet surprise.
  • These words are not what they first appear to be.
ii Warmer

What kind of thinking each group asks for.

  • Think of adjectives for things that can't hold their shape or tautness.
  • These are surnames from American history — you'll need to think of prominent historical figures, not fictional characters.
  • The connection is about sound, not spelling. Say each word aloud and listen for smaller alphabetic units.
  • This group rewards isolating the very end of each word, where a topographical term may emerge.
iii Mild spoilers

Pointed nudges on the words built to fool you.

  • These words are synonyms for the same physical condition: lacking tightness or muscle tone.
  • All four are surnames of commanders-in-chief from United States history; ignore any other famous name-associations.
  • Spoken aloud, each word becomes a pair of letter names in sequence — think phonetics, not dictionary definitions.
  • Each word’s final syllable is the name of a raised landform; look carefully at the spelling’s tail, not the word’s meaning.

Today’s Trap Words

The words engineered to mislead

Every Connections board plants a few decoys. Here are today’s, and why they pull you the wrong way.

DROOPY

A famous cartoon dog name, so it naturally drifts toward the comic-strip animal set that includes Garfield, Odie, and Heathcliff.

GARFIELD

Almost impossible to separate from the comic-strip cat; with Odie on the board, the cartoon-pet misdirection is very strong.

HEATHCLIFF

Pulls toward literary or comic-strip animals rather than the hidden suffix; it feels like a character clue, not a word-form clue.

ODIE

Looks like part of a comic-strip pet pair with Garfield, but its real connection is entirely about how the word sounds.

Connections Answers — September 13, 2026

Tap any group to reveal it
Answers are hidden — tap a group to peek, or reveal all at once.
LACKING IN FIRMNESS
DROOPY · SLACK · SAGGING · FLACCID
Tap to reveal
U.S. PRESIDENTS
GARFIELD · GRANT · MADISON · CLEVELAND
Tap to reveal
WORDS THAT SOUND LIKE TWO LETTERS
EMPTY · EXCESS · ODIE · KEWPIE
Tap to reveal
ENDING IN ELEVATED LANDFORMS
PORRIDGE · HEATHCLIFF · PARAMOUNT · DOUBLESPEAK
Tap to reveal
SEE ALSO:
NYT Wordle hints for September 13, 2026 NYT Pips hints for September 13, 2026 NYT Strands hints for September 13, 2026

Category Breakdown — Puzzle #1190

Why each group works — not just what it is

LACKING IN FIRMNESS

DROOPY, FLACCID, SAGGING, and SLACK all describe something lacking firmness or tension. They make an approachable yellow group, but DROOPY’s cartoon-dog identity is an early trap.

U.S. PRESIDENTS

CLEVELAND, GARFIELD, GRANT, and MADISON are presidential surnames. The constructor chose names that also point to a city, a cartoon cat, a verb, and a capital, making them far more deceptive than a typical trivia group.

WORDS THAT SOUND LIKE TWO LETTERS

EMPTY, EXCESS, KEWPIE, and ODIE all sound like two alphabet letters spoken in a row. The group tests whether solvers can tune out spelling and meaning and rely on pure phonetics.

ENDING IN ELEVATED LANDFORMS

DOUBLESPEAK, HEATHCLIFF, PARAMOUNT, and PORRIDGE each end in an elevated landform: peak, cliff, mount, and ridge. The hidden suffixes are neatly camouflaged inside very ordinary-looking English words.

Word Guide — All 16 Puzzle Words

What each word means in this puzzle
GARFIELD
Most people picture the comic-strip cat, yet the name is also a notable surname from American political history. Its pop-culture pull is a major distraction.
EXCESS
An amount beyond what is needed. Its spelling and meaning are straightforward, but its sound is the unexpected key.
MADISON
A capital city, a street name, and a surname from early American history. Its many everyday associations make it easy to sort into the wrong group.
PORRIDGE
A soft cooked cereal, often associated with breakfast and fairy tales. The word’s final letters conceal something topographical beneath its cozy meaning.
FLACCID
Soft and lacking firmness or muscle tone. It's a clinical-sounding adjective often used for plants or flesh, making it stand out among more casual synonyms.
PARAMOUNT
Of chief importance; supreme. It is also a famous Hollywood studio, which can distract from the geological feature tucked at its end.
EMPTY
Containing nothing; vacant. When said aloud, the dictionary word's pronunciation suggests something else entirely—a pair of alphabet letters.
CLEVELAND
A major Ohio city, but also a surname from American history. The double association with geography and government makes it a clever decoy.
SAGGING
Sinking or bending downward under weight, especially due to lost elasticity. This present-participle adjective feels physical and gradual, like fabric or posture giving way.
HEATHCLIFF
A brooding literary character from Wuthering Heights, as well as a comic-strip cat. The name's final syllable hides a natural feature.
DOUBLESPEAK
Language that deliberately disguises or distorts meaning, often political or evasive. The ending of this compound word is its hidden secret.
SLACK
Not held tightly in place; loose. Also means a period of low activity, but the puzzle angle is its meaning of insufficient tension.
GRANT
A common surname and a verb meaning to give or allow. Here the name points toward a historical figure rather than any action or use of funds.
DROOPY
Hanging down limply or lacking in stiffness. The word’s cartoon-dog association is a rich visual image, but in the puzzle it functions as a straightforward descriptive adjective.
KEWPIE
A small doll with a topknot, usually spelled Kewpie. The word’s sound is the real clue, not its toy-shop meaning.
ODIE
A comic-strip dog, often paired with Garfield. That cartoon connection creates a tempting trap, but the word also hides a phonetic clue when spoken.

Puzzle Design Analysis

Why the editor constructed it this way

This puzzle is built around a dazzling fake set: DROOPY, GARFIELD, ODIE, and HEATHCLIFF all look like a comic-strip animal group, but each is deliberately pulled into a different category. That bait forces solvers to abandon the most obvious grouping. The purple landform endings and blue letter-sound homophones are layered with words like PARAMOUNT and DOUBLESPEAK, which hide geography inside abstract or brand-like vocabulary. It’s an unusually trap-forward design.

Difficulty & Analysis

How tough today’s board really plays
Overall
7.5/10
Most deceptive
GARFIELD

a textbook decoy

Hardest group
Ending in Landforms

requires lateral thinking

Connections Strategy Guides

Get better at the game

More NYT Connections Puzzles