Step-by-step hints and answers for Connections #1196, from Saturday, September 19, 2026.
Short words and longer phrases share this grid, and the longer tiles are friendlier than they look. One set depends largely on what you happen to know, so it may come quickly or not at all. A tempting overlap reaches into several groups and is worth testing before you trust it. Work out what the cleverest four share and the rest of Saturday opens up quickly.
Open one step at a time. Step three names the group, so stop earlier if you want more of a challenge. New to the game? Read how to play Connections first, or see what the four colors mean.
Most direct
Think about a company or a person trying new things.
Each phrase means to reach into new areas, like a business that adds new products or a career that takes on new skills.
Widen one's scope
Fairly direct
Picture a crayon picture taped to a refrigerator.
Each is a classic element of a young child's art, from a yellow circle in the corner to a simple person drawn with a few strokes.
Features of a kid's drawing
Takes some thought
Think about the fashion and music scene of a European capital in the 1960s.
Each is linked to the youth culture of London in that decade, including a famous shopping lane, a daringly short dress style and a teenage fashion star with a slender frame.
Associated with Swinging London in the 1960s
Trickiest
Look at the first word of each tile.
Each tile opens with the short form of a function from a math class, like the ones on a scientific calculator.
Starting with abbreviated math functions
It is tempting to start pruning the moment you spot wood in this grid. BRANCH OUT, TWIGGY, LOG CABIN and TREE seem to grow from one trunk, and the set feels finished as soon as you see it. The puzzle never planted it: the four land in four different groups, and each tile only makes sense once you forget about timber.
More ways to dodge red herrings: our Connections tips.
Some meanings point toward a group, so they stay hidden until you open them.
This section shows all four groups. Only open it if you're finished or ready to give up.
BRANCH OUT, DIVERSIFY, EXPAND, GROW
Phrases meaning to widen one's scope: BRANCH OUT, DIVERSIFY, EXPAND and GROW.
HOUSE, STICK FIGURE, SUN, TREE
Things often seen in a child's drawing: a HOUSE, a STICK FIGURE, a SUN and a TREE.
CARNABY STREET, MINISKIRT, MOD, TWIGGY
Things associated with Swinging London in the 1960s: CARNABY STREET, the MINISKIRT, MOD style and the model TWIGGY.
COS LETTUCE, LOG CABIN, SIN CITY, TAN LINE
Tiles that start with a math function's short form: COS LETTUCE (cosine), LOG CABIN (logarithm), SIN CITY (sine) and TAN LINE (tangent).
The math tiles are a good place to begin once you spot them: COS LETTUCE, LOG CABIN, SIN CITY and TAN LINE all open with a function. TWIGGY then joins CARNABY STREET, MINISKIRT and MOD in 1960s London. A child's drawing gathers HOUSE, STICK FIGURE, SUN and TREE, and BRANCH OUT closes out the grid beside DIVERSIFY, EXPAND and GROW.
Want to get better at spotting groups? Start with our Connections tips.
Answers checked against the official answers by Alan. This puzzle appeared on Saturday, September 19, 2026.
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