NYT Connections is the daily word game that asks you to sort 16 seemingly unrelated words into four logical groups of four. For 26 December 2025, the puzzle delivered a delightfully California-centric theme wrapped around comedy, classic rock, and a clever hidden-word twist. Below, you'll find spoiler-free hints first, followed by the full answers.

NYT Connections Hints: 26 December 2025

Today's grid was all about vibes, genres, and mid-century cool. The puzzle leaned heavily into '70s nostalgia, West Coast stereotypes, and the language we use to describe comedy on screen.

A couple of categories looked obvious at first, but the real trick was resisting the urge to split similar-feeling words across multiple groups when they actually belonged together. Expect some ambiguity around SURFER and TECH BRO in particular—both feel like character types, but they anchor a bigger California theme.

Category 1: California-Based Character Tropes
  • All four of these are stereotypical personalities you'd find in California culture or media.​
  • Think attitudes, lifestyles, and accents more than job titles alone.​
  • One works in entertainment, one catches waves, one codes and pontificates, one says "like" constantly.​
  • They're exaggerated types, not specific individuals—the kind you'd see in a satirical teen flick or a commentary on West Coast excess.
Category 2: Comedy Subgenres
  • All of these words can precede "comedy" or "film" to describe a specific type of humor.​
  • Think about how critics and filmmakers classify movies by tone or target vibe.​
  • One involves two guys hanging out, one involves awkwardness, one involves old-fashioned romantic chaos, one involves a specific substance.​
  • These aren't movie titles; they're categories of movies.​
Category 3: '70s Rock Bands
  • All four are names of legendary rock bands from the 1970s or that era's sound.​
  • Classic rock radio staples, every one of them.​
  • One is a U.S. city, one is a continent, one describes foreigners, one implies a journey.​
  • Think stadium rock, arena tours, and vinyl collections.​
Category 4: Black ___
  • All of these words can follow "Black" to form a well-known title, phrase, or reference.​
  • Two are superheroes or spy characters, one is a dessert, one is a day.​
  • The pattern is straightforward once you see it, but it's easy to miss if you're locked into other groupings.​
  • Think cultural references, comics, food, and the calendar.

NYT Connections Answers: 26 December 2025

Here are the solutions, grouped by category.

Category 1:
Category 2:
Category 3:
Category 4:

Conclusion & Quick Strategy Tip

Today's puzzle rewarded solvers who recognized the California theme running through the character types and resisted the urge to split comedy genres across multiple categories. The '70s rock band category was particularly sneaky because AMERICA and CHICAGO work so naturally as place names that you might assign them elsewhere until you spot the pattern.

Quick strategy tip: when you notice a cluster of words that also have double meanings (like AMERICA as both a band and a continent), test whether they all share a hidden common thread before locking in a safer-looking group—NYT Connections loves rewarding that kind of pattern recognition.