NYT Connections — August 9, 2026
Hints — one at a time
Hint 1 of 5
Today's board runs from ways of switching strategy mid-plan, to beloved storybooks for young kids, to styles of movie, and ends with situations people would rather escape.
Hint 2 of 5
Yellow (easiest): each phrase means adjusting your plan or method once the original one stops working.
Hint 3 of 5
Green: these are all well-loved picture books that generations of kids have grown up reading.
Hint 4 of 5
Blue: each phrase names a recognizable style or subgenre of film, from a mismatched-partner cop caper to a western shot far from the American West.
Hint 5 of 5
Purple (hardest): each phrase names an unpleasant obligation, ordeal, or maze that people wish they could dodge or escape.
The answer — spoilers!
Reveal the full answer
Take a Different Approach
CHANGE TACK · COURSE-CORRECT · RECALIBRATE · SHIFT GEARS
Classic Children's Books
CAPS FOR SALE · CORDUROY · GOODNIGHT MOON · MADELINE
Movie Subgenres
BUDDY COP · NEO-NOIR · SPACE OPERA · SPAGHETTI WESTERN
Things People Try to Get Out Of
BAD DREAM · ESCAPE ROOM · JURY DUTY · LABYRINTH
This puzzle by the numbers
- Things People Try to Get Out Of
- SPAGHETTI WESTERN
Counted from our own archive of NYT Connections answers — not published anywhere else.
