The Monday edition of NYT Connections is here with puzzle #960, offering a thoughtfully designed grid that leans heavily on film knowledge and linguistic agility. The current challenge provides an excellent opportunity for movie fans to play the game while they search for hidden word meanings that are not immediately clear.

Since its debut in June 2023 Connections has become one of The New York Times most popular daily puzzles which people solve together with Wordle and the classic crossword. The players face a straightforward task because they need to divide 16 words into four groups that contain four words each through their shared thematic connections while they need to stay away from any thematic connections that could mislead them.

How NYT Connections Works

Each puzzle allows only four mistakes. The system uses color codes to show different difficulty levels which start with yellow as the easiest option and end with purple as the hardest option. The task becomes challenging because people need to avoid making basic surface connections between words which seem to belong to different categories.

Today’s Word Grid

Puzzle #960 presents the following 16 words:

FOSTER | COW | BADGE | MILK
RABBI | RATTLE | FIELD | MOOS
SQUEEZE | CLOSE | RUFFLE | FLEECE
WEAVER | DRAIN | GOA | BUFFALO

At first glance, the mix seems random, but each word belongs neatly to a single category.

Hints to Get You Started

• Yellow category: Words related to extracting value or resources
• Green category: Verbs that suggest intimidation or unsettling behavior
• Blue category: Surnames of award-winning actresses
• Purple category: Words that reveal animals when the last letter is removed

Solutions for NYT Connections #960

Yellow – Exploit:
DRAIN, FLEECE, MILK, SQUEEZE

These words describe different ways of extracting maximum value or resources.

Green – Daunt:
BUFFALO, COW, RATTLE, RUFFLE

Each verb means to intimidate, confuse, or unsettle someone.

Blue – Iconic Actresses:
CLOSE, FIELD, FOSTER, WEAVER

These are the surnames of Oscar-winning actresses Glenn Close, Sally Field, Jodie Foster, and Sigourney Weaver.

Purple – Mammals Minus the Last Letter:
BADGE, GOA, MOOS, RABBI

Removing the final letter reveals animals: badger, goat, moose, and rabbit.

Final Take

Puzzle #960 lands in the moderate difficulty range. The yellow category is relatively straightforward, while green demands a shift from literal meanings. Blue tests pop culture awareness, and purple delivers the trickiest twist with its subtle letter-removal mechanic.

Common traps include mistaking actress surnames like Foster and Field for verbs, or grouping cow and buffalo as animals rather than intimidation verbs. As always, the puzzle’s brilliance lies in these intentional misdirections.

The next NYT Connections puzzle drops at midnight local time. Until then, puzzle #960 is officially solved.