FOURSURE
September 9, 2026 Puzzle Breakdown
Four groups, four words each — here's the connections between today's words.
How everyone did today
Lukewarm affirmatives
Okay, Alright, Fine, Sure
We kick things off with the linguistic equivalent of a shrug. Okay, alright, fine, and sure all signal agreement, but only in the most unenthusiastic, resigned way possible. If you solved the easiest group today with a mild nod of indifference, you captured the exact spirit of the set.
Plural pets
Dogs, Birds, Lizards, Hamsters
A straightforward menagerie for the second group today. Dogs, birds, lizards, and hamsters are all common household pets, presented here in their plural forms. If you spent any time looking for a clever double meaning or an obscure taxonomy trick, you overthought it.
Homophones for letters
Are, You, Pea, Jay
Reading these aloud was the only way through the second-hardest group today. Are, you, pea, and jay are all phonetic doubles for the letters R, U, P, and J, masquerading as verbs, pronouns, legumes, and birds. It is an old constructor trick, but it still works when you are looking for meaning instead of sound.
Closed Broadway Musicals
Annie, Cats, Phantom of the Opera, Les Miserables
Even the biggest juggernauts in theater history eventually have to dim the marquee lights. While Annie, Cats, Phantom of the Opera, and Les Miserables feel like permanent fixtures of the Great White Way, every one of these iconic musicals has officially closed its Broadway run. If you assumed at least one of these legendary cash cows was still running today, that misplaced faith is precisely what made this the hardest group of the puzzle.
Why these four groups
This grid hinges on animal kingdom traps to bait hasty solvers. Tossing Cats into the mix immediately tempts a five-way pet cluster alongside Dogs, Birds, Lizards, and Hamsters, while Jay dangles a secondary avian distraction away from the letter homophones. The difficulty curve holds firm because the conversational brush-offs like Okay and Fine offer an obvious foothold, leaving the true tension in the middle. Once Cats is correctly paired with Phantom of the Opera and Les Miserables rather than a litter box, the letter sounds fall into place, keeping the Broadway category rightfully crowned at the top.