Connections hints and defintions for November 16, 2023

Today’s Connections puzzle features an ark-full of animals from the forests, fields and seas. But the real trick is that some of the words refer to animals and you don’t even know it!

Connections is a new word game from the New York Times where you have to sort 16 words into 4 different categories of 4 words. It’s a tough challenge, especially since you only have 4 guesses to uncover all of the hidden relationships, but with some luck and a little bit of skill it’s possible.

To help you out if you’re stuck, we’ve devised a few Connections hints to help you along. These include the definitions of every featured word - since sometimes that’s enough of a clue to make you see something you missed - as well as alternative words that could also fit into the same category.

If you’re completely ready to give up though, we’ve also listed the answers below too. It’s serious business once you’re down to your last guess!

Connections hints for November 16, 2023

• Group 1 hint: These words are full of it - Alternative words: Rubbish, Drivel, Hooey
• Group 2 hint: All of these words are headed in the right direction - Alternative words: Pilot, Navigate, Escort
• Group 3 hint: These words stay the same whether there’s one thing or many - Alternative words: Sheep, Antelope, Elk
• Group 4 hint: Varieties of these words are all large in size or stature - Alternative words: Expectations, Escape, Barrier Reef

Connections definitions for November 16, 2023

• Steer - To control the movement of a vehicle or someone’s path or thinking, or a male cow
• Bull - A male cow, the middle of a dartboard, or an untruth
• Dane - A person or animal from Denmark
• Moose - A huge mammalian creature native to Northern Eurasia and North America
• Seal - To fasten something securely, a device or substance used to fasten something, or a blubbery aquatic mammal
• Lead - To take something in a particular direction, the main character, or a metallic element
• Buffalo - A North American bison
• Hogwash - Poppycock or an untruth
• Direct - Going from one place to another without stopping, or saying something without ambiguity
• Lake - A large area of water surrounded by land
• Nonsense - Unclear, unintelligible or untrustworthy information
• White - A color that reflects all visible rays of light
• Guide - A person who shows others the way, or a written work that details the solution or method of something
• Fish - Aquatic vertebrate animals, to search by rooting around in something, or probe speculatively for an answer
• Rot - The process of decay, or something untrue
• Deer - A hoofed forest mammal the males of which typically have antlers

Connections answers for November 16, 2023

Click or press on the spoiler tags below to reveal the hidden Connections answers.

• Group 1 answer: “Balderdash” - Bull, Nonsense, Hogwash, Rot
• Group 2 answer: “Helm” - Direct, Guide, Steer, Lead
• Group 3 answer: “Single/Plural Animals” - Buffalo, Fish, Deer, Moose
• Group 4 answer: “Great ____” - Dane, Lake, Seal, White

I felt like this was a good, classic Connections puzzle that was tough without being too esoteric with its words and categories.

Having Steer and Bull in the mix with Buffalo was a nice touch, a fun cow-related red herring to sort out before you could make your way to the solution. But I think once the animals were out of the way, the Connections slotted nicely into place.