NYT Connections — October 16, 2026
Hints — one at a time
Hint 1 of 5
Today's board moves from small surface flaws or blemishes, to countries that have no coastline, to European nations missing one letter, and finally to words that start with a synonym for fashionable.
Hint 2 of 5
Yellow (easiest): each of these describes a small flaw or blemish on a surface.
Hint 3 of 5
Green: each of these is a country with no direct access to the ocean.
Hint 4 of 5
Blue: each of these becomes a European country once you add back one missing letter.
Hint 5 of 5
Purple (hardest): each of these starts with a word meaning stylish or fashionable — chic, cool, hip, or smart.
The answer — spoilers!
Reveal the full answer
Surface Imperfections
CHIP · MARK · NICK · SCRATCH
Landlocked Countries
CHAD · HUNGARY · LAOS · PARAGUAY
European Countries Minus A Letter
BULGARI · CYRUS · HUNGRY · SPAN
Starting With Words For "Stylish"
CHICKEN · COOLIDGE · HIPPO · SMARTIES
This puzzle by the numbers
- Starting With Words For "Stylish"
- PARAGUAY
Counted from our own archive of NYT Connections answers — not published anywhere else.
