NYT Connections Hints for August 16, 2026 — Puzzle #1162

Sixteen words, four hidden categories. Hints reveal structure, then the grouping.

Hints and answers for NYT Connections #1162 on August 16, 2026: how many groups there are, a masked theme for each group, then the four categories one at a time, then all sixteen words and the full grouping.

Puzzle date: August 16, 2026 (2026-08-16) · #1162 · Source: the game's public daily data (https://www.nytimes.com/svc/connections/v2/2026-08-16.json). Hints are derived from that day's verified answer data — no invented clues, difficulty scores or word claims.

1. The shape of the puzzle

There are 4 categories of 4 words each (16 words total).

2. The four themes, masked

Each theme below keeps its word shapes and the first letter of every word:

M _ _ _ _ _ _ P _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
P _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
F _ _ _ _ _ R _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ M _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
D _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ F _ _ O _ _ H _ _ _ _ A _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

3. Reveal a theme, one at a time

Show theme 1

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE

Show theme 2

PARTICIPANT

Show theme 3

FAMILY RELATIONSHIP MODIFIERS

Show theme 4

DESCRIPTORS FOR OUR HUMAN ANCESTORS

NYT Connections answer for August 16, 2026 — puzzle #1162

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE

CONCERT, SET, SHOW, GIG

PARTICIPANT

PARTY, ACTOR, PLAYER, AGENT

FAMILY RELATIONSHIP MODIFIERS

GRAND, HALF, STEP, GREAT

DESCRIPTORS FOR OUR HUMAN ANCESTORS

HANDY, UPRIGHT, WISE, FROM NEANDER

Recent NYT Connections puzzles

Next puzzle · Previous puzzle

This site is an independent hints page. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by The New York Times. Game names are used only to describe the games.