Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints, Answers for Dec. 29 #462

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Today’s Connections: Sports Edition has a particularly difficult purple category, in which you have to play with the spelling of certain words. If you’re having trouble solving today’s riddle but still want to solve it, read on for tips and answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the Times-owned subscription sports journalism site. It doesn’t appear in the NYT Games app, but in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it online for free.

Learn more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle exits beta

Tips for Connections Groups: Sports Today’s Edition

Here are four clues for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ordered from the easiest yellow group to the difficult (and sometimes weird) purple group.

Yellow group index: Cast a line.

Green group index: Get this base.

Blue group index: Monsters of Midway.

Purple group index: Play with the team names.

Connections Group Answers: Today’s Sports Edition

Yellow group: Fishing conditions.

Green Group: Basic results.

Blue group: Members of the Chicago Bears.

Purple group: MLS teams, with the first letter changed.

Learn more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are the answers from today’s Connections: Sports Edition?

Yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is fishing terms. The four answers are bobber, hook, lure and reel.

Green words in today’s Connections

The theme is basic results. The four responses are pickle, pickoff, steal and tag.

Blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is members of the Chicago Bears. The four answers are Kmet, Loveland, Sweat and Swift.

Purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is MLS teams, with the first letter changed. The four answers are Founders (Sounders), Rental (Fire), Limbers (Timbers) and Onion (Union).

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