Pips Answer for Thursday, September 25, 2025
Complete NYT Pips puzzle solution with interactive board and expert analysis.
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Nyt Pips easy answer for 2025-09-25
Answer for 2025-09-25
I started with the Easy puzzle by looking at the small 5x2 grid. The first thing I noticed was the empty cell at [0,0] and the sum target of 10 for the three-cell region at [1,0], [2,0], and [3,0].
Since I had dominoes like [2,3], [3,1], [1,5], and [3,4], I had to figure out which combination would fit the sum and the equals region at the bottom. I placed the [1,5] domino carefully and realized the [3,4] had to be split to satisfy the sum of 5 in the corner. Moving to the
Nyt Pips medium answer for 2025-09-25
Answer for 2025-09-25
Medium puzzle, things got busier with a 5x6 grid. I immediately looked for the sum targets of 1, because those are usually the easiest 'anchors'. With a sum of 1 at [2,0] and [3,0], I knew I was dealing with a [1,0] domino.
I then tackled the large 'equals' regions by comparing the available pips on the remaining dominoes. The hardest part was the [2,5] and [3,5] sum of 11, which narrowed it down to the [5,6] or [6,5] pips, but looking at my list, it was the [5,6] from the [2,6] domino. Finally,
Nyt Pips hard answer for 2025-09-25
Answer for 2025-09-25
for the Hard puzzle, I focused on the sum of 10 at [0,3] and [1,3]. I had a [6,6] and a [5,3] available, but the surrounding constraints and the empty cells at [1,0] and [5,0] forced a specific orientation.
I used a process of elimination on the 'equals' region in the top left, checking which remaining pips could be shared across five cells. It took some back-and-forth, especially with the [6,6] domino, but matching the sums of 8, 2, 7, and 6 in the bottom half eventually locked everything into place.
What I Learned
One big takeaway from today's set is how much the 'empty' cells act as barriers that define the flow of the puzzle. In the Hard puzzle, the empty cells at [5,0] and [5,1] really restricted where the larger dominoes like [6,6] could go.
I also noticed a pattern where 'equals' regions with many cells often rely on pips from multiple different dominoes being the same value, rather than one high-value domino. It is a good reminder to always count your remaining pips before committing to a high-sum area.