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NYT Releases Connections #1053 with Process and Thunder Themes

4/30/2026

Summary

NYT Releases Puzzle

The New York Times (U.S.) released Connections puzzle #1053 on April 29, 2026, with full answers.
The yellow group’s theme “step in a process” includes LEVEL, PHASE, ROUND and STAGE.
The green group’s theme “sound like thunder” comprises BOOM, CLAP, ROLL and RUMBLE.
The Connections Bot assigns numeric scores, tracks win rates, perfect scores and streaks.
The game permits four wrong guesses and provides a “one away” hint after three correct picks.

Summary

NYT Connections Rated Easy

The puzzle launches at midnight local time, so players in different zones may be solving yesterday’s grid.
The Times rates the puzzle “easy” with a 1.7-out-of-5 difficulty score.
Connections debuted in June 2023 and now shares the daily roster with Wordle and the crossword.
The author earned a perfect score after betting on “OVATION” as the first purple answer.
Guides say yellow clues are easiest and purple clues hardest, reflecting the color-coded difficulty.

History

Historical Context

Josh Wardle’s Wordle, built from a 2013 prototype and released publicly in October 2021, surged to 300,000 daily players within a month and two million the following week. The New York Times bought the game in January 2022 and, leveraging its viral format, launched the Connections feature in June 2023, with puzzle editor Tracy Bennett later handling its Wordle content.

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NYT Releases Puzzle

The New York Times (U.S.) released Connections puzzle #1053 on April 29, 2026, with full answers.
The yellow group’s theme “step in a process” includes LEVEL, PHASE, ROUND and STAGE.
The green group’s theme “sound like thunder” comprises BOOM, CLAP, ROLL and RUMBLE.
The Connections Bot assigns numeric scores, tracks win rates, perfect scores and streaks.
The game permits four wrong guesses and provides a “one away” hint after three correct picks.

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