NYT’s Connections Answers (June 10): Today's Puzzle Teases Minds With Twists, Slang & Civic Clues

NYT Connections Answers: The New York Times' daily Connections puzzle returned today with another cerebral grid of 16 words, grouped not by what they seem to say, but by the elusive themes that tie them together. If you were scratching your head on Tuesday, June 10, you're not alone — this edition, Puzzle #729, threw in everything from ‘Chair’ and ‘Psych’ to ‘Customs’ and ‘Radical’. As always, the challenge lies in sorting these words into four hidden categories, with each quartet sharing a common concept.

The words for the day: Chill, Image, Moderate, Radical, Table, Judge, Civic, Chair, Jury, Word, Text Box, Customs, Psych, Chart, Heavy, Mediate.

So, how do these words connect? That's the trick.

The Colour Code: How Tough Was Today?

In Connections, each group is colour-coded by difficulty:

  • Yellow (easiest)
  • Green (easy)
  • Blue (medium)
  • Purple (hardest)

For June 10, the Yellow group was themed Arbitrate, containing words like Chair, Judge, Mediate, and Moderate. Fittingly, these are all roles or actions that involve neutral intervention or decision-making.

The Green group was a bit more digital — it included Chart, Image, Table, and Text Box, all of which are elements commonly inserted into documents. This set was labelled Things You Can Insert In A Document.

A Nostalgic Throwback & A Civic Surprise

The Blue group brought a blast from the past with the theme ‘80s Slang — featuring Chill, Psych, Radical, and Word. If you’ve ever watched Saved by the Bell or The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, these words might've popped into your head instantly.

The toughest group, marked Purple, fell under the theme ___ Duty. These were the trickiest to link: Civic, Customs, Heavy, and Jury. But once you add “duty” to the end of each, the theme clicks into place.

Hints & Tricks to Tackle the Puzzle

If you were stuck, a few official hints might have nudged you forward. Among the clues:

  • “These words hold the power to intervene” (hinting at the Yellow group)
  • “Judge and jury are in different groups” — a gentle push to avoid easy traps.
  • Or this little tip: Each group contains either one or two five-letter words.

That’s a subtle nudge to avoid surface-level pairings and dig deeper into contextual meanings.

Connections continues to ride the wave of word game popularity, following in the footsteps of Wordle, but with a thematic twist. Whether you're a casual solver or a puzzle junkie, today's grid proved once again: thinking outside the (text) box is the only way to win.

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