Clusters

Clusters is a daily word-grouping puzzle in the family the New York Times made a morning ritual: sixteen tiles on a grid secretly belong to four groups of four, sorted by category, theme, or some sideways connection, and your job is to find every group before four mistakes run you out. What makes it more than sorting is the traps — tiles are deliberately chosen so a few look like they fit two groups at once, and the nastiest tier, purple, tends to be the wordplay everyone falls for. Smart play starts with the group you are surest of, since locking it away clears the clutter hiding the rest; when the game tells you a guess is one away, three of your four are right and you should swap the odd one out rather than start over. The same sixteen tiles face everyone that day, generated from the date so no account is needed, and a spoiler-free emoji grid lets you share how you did. A practice mode serves endless fresh boards whenever the daily is done. Free, no sign-up.