Today’s Connection puzzle is a real headscratcher. Not only is there a kitchen-related red herring hiding in plain sight, but it also goes into some niche categories that many users may not be aware of. The good news is that we’re here to help. We’ll start you off with some general hints before giving away all the solved groups. So, without further ado, here are all the hints, clues, and answers to today’s NYT Connections (#1,089, June 4, 2026)
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In This Article
What is Connections?
Connections is the New York Times’ most popular word game after Wordle. It presents you with 16 words in a 4×4 grid. You are supposed to spot 4 groups of 4 words with common connections. The Yellow group is the easiest to spot, followed by Green, Blue, and Purple, which is the toughest to crack. The game often has misdirections and red herrings to make it more fun. You can play it on the NYT Games app or the official NYT website.
Some tips to solve Connections
Look for the obvious patterns: Not every category in the puzzle is confusing. The Yellow and Green category words are relatively easy to spot. However, if something seems too obvious, it could be a red herring. Typically, the first two categories comprise verbs and adjectives. The misdirects are often nouns.
Double-check your submissions: ‘Do not overthink’ is usually a good tip for solving most puzzles, but it doesn’t really apply to Connections. Before submitting a set of words, you should always check whether they fit somewhere else too.
Hit a dead end? Use the shuffle button: The shuffle button at the bottom of the grid exists for a reason. Placing the words in different positions can spark new connections. Think of it as a mental refresh. New patterns will emerge, and you may be able to find a breakthrough.
Tackle the Purple category with extra caution: The Connections team is known to serve up the toughest and most unexpected words for the Purple category. Here are some of the common tropes that you should look out for:
- Homophones (For example: ‘Where’, ‘Wear’, ‘Ware’, and ‘Weir’)
- Words within words (For example: ‘Slip’, ‘Hear’, ‘Keyes’, and ‘Undiagnosed’ could be ‘Words containing parts of the face’)
- Words minus a letter (For example: ‘Anther’, ‘Easel’, ‘Hark’, and ‘Lama’ could be ‘Animals minus starting letter’)
- Words preceded or followed by another word (For example: ‘Face’, ‘Sports’, ‘Note’, and ‘Year’ could be ‘____ Book’)
Here’s your grid for today
- PUBLIC
- WRITER
- SALT
- PEPPER
- OIL
- VINEGAR
- KITCHEN
- TEMPERA
- PANACHE
- GOUACHE
- RUN
- TOWN
- BEASTIE
- VERVE
- ACRYLIC
- GUSTO
Hints for NYT Connections (#1,089) June 4, 2026
Let’s get you started with some general, spoiler-free hints.
- 🟡Yellow Group: Kinds of paint.
- 🟢Green Group: Lively, enthusiastic, or clever.
- 🔵Blue Group: Think music groups.
- 🟣Purple Group: Preceded by a common word with a supernatural essence.
One Word Per Category (Contains Spoilers)
Can’t seem to find an in? We’ll give you one word from each category.
- 🟡Yellow Group: Acrylic.
- 🟢Green Group: Gusto.
- 🔵Blue Group: Beastie.
- 🟣Purple Group: Kitchen.
List of Themes (Major Spoilers)
Maybe getting to know the common themes among the words will help you spot them faster. Here are all the categories for today.
- 🟡Yellow Group: Painting Media.
- 🟢Green Group: Esprit.
- 🔵Blue Group: Starts Of Classic Hip-Hop Groups.
- 🟣Purple Group: Ghost ____.
Answers to NYT Connections (#1,089) Today (June 4, 2026)
Close to waving the white flag? Fine, we’ll give you the answers.
- 🟡Yellow Group: Acrylic, Gouache, Oil, Tempera. (Painting Media)
If you looked past the kitchen seasonings misdirect today, you probably did not have a hard time with this group. All of the words in this category are descriptors for pain.
- 🟢Green Group: Gusto, Panache, Verve, Vinegar. (Esprit)
This was a tricky one. While Gusto, Panache, and Verve have positive connotations to them, ‘Vinegar’ isn’t typically associated with a positive flair or enthusiastic demeanour.
- 🔵Blue Group: Beastie, Public, Run, Salt. (Starts Of Classic Hip-Hop Groups)
Hiphopheads would have loved this one. If you didn’t get it, the words describe classic hip-hop groups – Beastie Boys, Public Enemy, Run DMC, and Salt-n-Pepa.
- 🟣Purple Group: Kitchen, Pepper, Town, Writer. (Ghost ___)
Today’s Purple category made itself obvious after solving the first two groups. The Salt and Pepper connection may have tricked a lot of folks today.
Answers to yesterday’s puzzle (#1,088, June 3, 2026)
- 🟡Yellow Group: Brown, Jasmine, Sticky, Sushi. (Kinds Of Rice)
- 🟢Green Group: Colorful, Gummy, Sugary, Ursine. (Gummy Bear Descriptors)
- 🔵Blue Group: Empanada, Fatayer, Pasty, Samosa. (Savory Stuffed Pastries)
- 🟣Purple Group: Arie, Bell, Moan, Ray. (Disney Princesses Minus Last Letter)
Answers to NYT Connections #1,087 (June 2, 2026)
- 🟡Yellow Group: Cloak-and-Dagger, Covert, Hush-Hush, Top Secret. (Clandestine)
- 🟢Green Group: Bubble and Squeak, Chips, Jacket Potato, Mash. (British Potato Dishes)
- 🔵Blue Group: Coat of Arms, Crest, Helmet, Shield. (Heraldic Achievements)
- 🟣Purple Group: Cape May, Free Will, Grape Must, Tin Can. (Ending In Modal Auxiliary Verbs)
Answers to NYT Connections (#1,086) June 1, 2026
- 🟡Yellow Group: Ceiling, Door, Wall, Window. (Room Features)
- 🟢Green Group: Newspaper, Pipe, Robe, Slippers. (Old-Timey Lounging Accessories)
- 🔵Blue Group: Cat, Menagerie, Streetcar, Tattoo. (Subjects In Tennessee Williams Titles)
- 🟣Purple Group: Key, Onion, Tree, Wedding. (___ Ring)
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How did other solvers do today?
NYT’s early testers rated today’s Connection puzzle 3.3 out of 5. This puts it in the hard difficulty level. Let us know how you fared in the comments!
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