In this puzzle, solvers often get stuck on the purple group, particularly when trying to connect the words that follow 'deep'. Words like "fake" and "freeze" can easily mislead players who are thinking of other contexts or phrases, such as 'deep fake' or 'deep freeze', but might overlook that all four words are indeed valid in this context. Similarly, players might confuse 'madness' and 'nonsense' in the yellow group, as both relate to irrationality but do not share a common theme that aligns with the other words. This can lead to hesitation and uncertainty when determining the correct groupings.

To distinguish the real groups from plausible decoys, players should focus on the distinct themes represented by the words. For instance, in the yellow group, the theme of irrationality is clear; however, players might be tempted to mix in words that relate to confusion but don't fit the specific theme of foolishness. Identifying the core theme helps in eliminating words that, while they may seem related, do not share the same essence. In the green group, for example, all words relate to a sense of forward movement, making it easier to identify that they belong together, while the blue group distinctly categorizes things that might have a bad smell, which is a very different concept.

A useful heuristic for players is to always look for common themes or categories first. When you identify a group of words, ask yourself what they all have in common, and if any word feels like it doesn’t belong, it probably doesn’t. Additionally, when faced with ambiguous words, consider their most common pairings or usages in phrases. This approach will often clarify their proper grouping and help avoid mixing words that might superficially seem related but do not fit the intended categories.