Today’s NYT Connections Answers– February 14, 2026 (#979)

Need today’s NYT Connections answers for February 14, 2026 (#979)? This Valentine’s Day puzzle had a satisfying mix of vocabulary, shape-based clues, movie knowledge, and a clever word-pair twist.

Below you’ll find spoiler-free hints first, followed by complete answers and explanations.

Puzzle date: Saturday, February 14, 2026
Puzzle number: 979
Game: Connections by The New York Times
Difficulty: 3.5/5 ⭐

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🧩 Progressive Hints for Connections #979

Ranked from easiest (yellow) to hardest (purple):

Color	Hint	Difficulty
🟨 Yellow	Not going down	★★☆☆☆
🟩 Green	Sticks out	★★☆☆☆
🟦 Blue	He starred in Big, too	★★★☆☆
🟪 Purple	Common toothpaste flavor	★★★★☆

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✅ Full Answers – NYT Connections #979

🟨 Yellow – Uptick

• HIKE
• JUMP
• RISE
• SPIKE

All four words describe an increase or upward movement.

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🟩 Green – Protuberance

• BUMP
• HUMP
• LUMP
• MOUND

Each word refers to something that sticks out or protrudes.

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🟦 Blue – Tom Hanks Roles

All four answers are characters portrayed by Tom Hanks:

• GUMP (Forrest Gump)
• PHILLIPS (Captain Phillips)
• SULLY (Sully)
• WOODY (Toy Story)

Once one clicked, the rest fell into place quickly for movie fans.

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🟪 Purple – Words Before “Mint”

• BREATH (breath mint)
• JUNIOR (Junior Mint)
• PEPPER (peppermint)
• SPEAR (spearmint)

A classic Connections word-pair twist. The trick was thinking of common phrases or compound words involving “mint.”

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💡 Why Today’s Puzzle Was Fun

• Yellow and Green were clean vocabulary sets.
• Blue rewarded film knowledge.
• Purple required thinking in compound terms rather than definitions.

If you got stuck, saying possible pairings aloud (“breath mint,” “pepper mint”) often helps reveal the pattern.

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🧠 Quick Strategy Tip

When one word seems incomplete (like “pepper”), ask yourself:

What common word can follow this?

Connections frequently uses compound phrases or brand names as the purple twist.

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❓ FAQ – NYT Connections February 14, 2026 (#979)

Q: What are the answers for Connections #979?
🟨 Uptick: HIKE, JUMP, RISE, SPIKE
🟩 Protuberance: BUMP, HUMP, LUMP, MOUND
🟦 Tom Hanks Roles: GUMP, PHILLIPS, SULLY, WOODY
🟪 Words before “mint”: BREATH, JUNIOR, PEPPER, SPEAR

Q: Which category was hardest today?
Most players found the purple “mint” category trickiest.

Q: How many mistakes are allowed in Connections?
You get four incorrect guesses before the puzzle ends.

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Perfect solve? 🟨🟩🟦🟪
Which category clicked first — Tom Hanks or uptick words?

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