Pips Answer for Monday, January 19, 2026
Complete NYT Pips puzzle solution with interactive board and expert analysis.
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Expert Puzzle Analysis
Deep insights from puzzle experts
Nyt Pips easy answer for 2026-01-19
Answer for 2026-01-19
I started with the Easy puzzle to get my brain in gear. Since it's a small 2x4 grid, I looked at the sum regions first.
The region at (0,2) and (0,3) needed a sum of 7, and looking at my available dominoes, that clearly meant the [3,4] combination from the [2,4] and [3,3] set. I placed the [0,2] domino near the empty (0,1) slot and connected the rest by matching the sum of 3 and 4 in the remaining regions.
Nyt Pips medium answer for 2026-01-19
Answer for 2026-01-19
For the Medium puzzle, the grid got a bit bigger. I immediately targeted the 'equals' regions. Since (1,2), (1,3), and (2,2) all had to be equal, I looked for a value that appeared on multiple dominoes.
The sum region of 12 at (2,4) and (2,5) was a huge giveaway—that had to be the [6,6] or [5,6] plus something high, but given the inventory, [5,6] was the key. I worked through the 'greater than 4' constraint at (3,5) and eventually the whole board clicked into place. The
Nyt Pips hard answer for 2026-01-19
Answer for 2026-01-19
Hard puzzle by Rodolfo Kurchan was the real challenge. I focused on the large 'equals' blocks first. The 2x2 square at (4,0), (4,1), (5,0), (5,1) required four identical values, which meant I needed to find dominoes with matching pips.
I cross-referenced the sum of 12 and the sum of 10 at the bottom. The trickiest part was the sum of 4 spread across four different cells at (3,2), (4,2), (4,3), and (5,3). I realized these had to be mostly 1s and 0s. Once those low-value dominoes were locked in, the remaining high-value ones like the [6,2] and [5,6] fell into their designated sum regions.
What I Learned
This set really emphasized how important it is to look at the 'empty' cells as anchors. In the Medium puzzle, the empty spots at (2,1) and (2,6) essentially dictated where the dominoes couldn't go, which narrowed down the rotation of the [3,1] and [3,6] pieces.
I also noticed a pattern in the Hard puzzle where the 'equals' regions often force you to use your double dominoes (like [0,0] or [1,1]) or identical halves of different dominoes. The most satisfying move was figuring out the sum of 4 region in the Hard puzzle; it looked impossible at first, but it actually restricted the surrounding pieces so much that the rest of the puzzle solved itself.