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A Reverse Rainbow in NYT Connections is a perfect solve in the order Purple → Blue → Green → Yellow, with no incorrect guesses. It refers to an in-game badge or achievement; the challenge is identifying all four groups and predicting their assigned difficulty colors before you submit any of them.
What is a Reverse Rainbow in NYT Connections?
Connections presents 16 words or other entries that players sort into four groups of four. Each group is assigned a color associated with its difficulty. A Reverse Rainbow means solving those groups from the hardest color to the easiest: Purple, then Blue, then Green, then Yellow.
The solve must be completed without a mistake. Submitting an incorrect group disqualifies the attempt, even if you later find the right categories or finish the puzzle.
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The usual color progression runs from Yellow as easiest to Purple as hardest, but those colors are puzzle difficulty cues, not objective ratings of how hard a category will feel to every player. Familiarity with a topic, how direct a connection seems, and the puzzle’s wording can all affect a player’s judgment.
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Adjacent colors can be especially hard to distinguish: a category that feels straightforward to one person may not be the puzzle’s easiest group, and the same uncertainty can arise between Blue and Purple. There is no foolproof way to infer the assigned difficulty from the category alone.
How to attempt the Reverse Rainbow badge
- Study all 16 entries before submitting. Look for possible relationships across the entire grid rather than committing to the first group that seems clear.
- Write down four candidate categories. Check that each accounts for exactly four entries and that the groups do not overlap.
- Rank the categories by likely game difficulty. Identify the least direct or most wordplay-dependent connection as a Purple candidate, then assess the remaining groups for Blue, Green, and Yellow.
- Review the full sequence. Since one incorrect guess ends the attempt, submit only when both the groupings and the Purple → Blue → Green → Yellow order seem plausible.
Pre-solving helps you plan, but it cannot guarantee the badge: the game’s color assignments may not match your personal sense of difficulty.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Where can you play?
Connections is available on the New York Times website and in the NYT Games app. The sources describing the badge do not establish a specific official rule page or separate access terms for earning it.
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