Four by Four hints ·
Hints for today's Four by Four puzzle
Open one hint at a time for each group. Hints go from a vague nudge to nearly naming the category, and each group stays hidden until you choose to reveal it. Play this puzzle.
The sixteen words
BUTTER · TABLE · NEEDLE · CANINE · THIMBLE · FREIGHT · HONEY · HORSE · BOBBIN · DRAGON · KITTEN · DEFER · DELAY · THREAD · SHELVE · FIRE
Group 1
Hint 1: A nudge
Small helpers that live together in a little box at home.
Hint 2: Narrowing it down
You would reach for these when a hem comes undone.
Hint 3: Nearly there
Everything here belongs with a spool, a seam and a patch.
Group 2
Hint 1: A nudge
Sometimes the right answer is simply not now.
Hint 2: Narrowing it down
Plans, meetings and decisions can all get this treatment.
Hint 3: Nearly there
Four verbs for pushing something back until later.
Group 3
Hint 1: A nudge
Each of these is only half finished.
Hint 2: Narrowing it down
Attach the same short word to every one and you get a creature.
Hint 3: Nearly there
The missing piece is a tiny winged pest you swat away.
Group 4
Hint 1: A nudge
Ignore what these mean and look at the letters instead.
Hint 2: Narrowing it down
Each one is concealing something you could count on.
Hint 3: Nearly there
Buried inside every word, in order, is a number from one to ten.