NYT Connections (#1,138) Hints, Clues, and Answers to Ace Today’s Puzzle (July 23, 2026)

Stumped by today’s Connections puzzle? Don’t worry, we’re here to help. We’ll get you started with some general hints to nudge you in the right direction. Then, we’ll give you one word from each category and the list of themes. Finally, you can have the answers and their explanations. So, without further ado, here are all the hints, clues, and answers to today’s NYT Connections (#1,139, July 23, 2026).

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What is Connections?

Connections is one of the most popular word games from The New York Times, only trailing behind Wordle. The rules of the game are simple. You are presented with a 16-word grid where you’re supposed to find the entries that share something in common. There are a total of 4 groups, each consisting of 4 letters, that you must find. The Yellow group is the easiest to spot, followed by Green, Blue, and Purple. Sometimes, there are a couple of red herrings to throw you off and make the puzzle more interesting. You can play Connections in the NYT Games app or on the 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

• JANGLE
• INTENSE
• ORANGE
• FELINE
• FEBRILE
• BASEBALL
• MARBLE
• APRON
• APPOINT
• TERMINAL
• EXCITED
• RUNWAY
• FRENETIC
• HANGAR
• DEPLANE
• GLOBE

Hints for NYT Connections (#1,138) July 23, 2026

Let’s get you started with some general, spoiler-free hints.

• 🟡Yellow Group: Round.
• 🟢Green Group: Restless.
• 🔵Blue Group: Things you see or use while taking a flight.
• 🟣Purple Group: The last parts of these words have a common math-adjacent theme.

One Word Per Category (Contains Spoilers)

Can’t seem to find an in? We’ll give you one word from each category.

• 🟡Yellow Group: Baseball.
• 🟢Green Group: Excited.
• 🔵Blue Group: Apron.
• 🟣Purple Group: Appoint.

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: Spherical Things.
• 🟢Green Group: In An Anxious State.
• 🔵Blue Group: Parts Of An Airport.
• 🟣Purple Group: Ending In Geometry Terms.

Answers to NYT Connections (#1,138) Today (July 23, 2026)

Close to waving the white flag? Fine, we’ll give you the answers.

• 🟡Yellow Group: Baseball, Globe, Marble, Orange. (Spherical Things)

Today’s Yellow group is as straightforward as it gets. All of these items have a spherical shape.

• 🟢Green Group: Excited, Febrile, Frenetic, Intense. (In An Anxious State)

These words describe different levels of unease, restlessness, or anxiety.

• 🔵Blue Group: Apron, Hangar, Runway, Terminal. (Parts Of An Airport)

You can spot all of these things at an airport. An apron is a paved area for planes to park. A hangar is used to store, repair, and protect airplanes. A runway is an asphalt or concrete strip from which planes take off. A terminal is a building where passengers check in and board their planes.

• 🟣Purple Group: Appoint, Deplane, Feline, Jangle. (Ending In Geometry Terms)

Ap-point. De-plane. Fe-line. J-angle.

Answers to yesterday’s puzzle (#1,137, July 22, 2026)

• 🟡Yellow Group: Hives, Itching, Rash, Redness. (Symptoms Of An Allergic Reaction)
• 🟢Green Group: Hole, Par, Score, Strokes. (On A Golf Scorecard)
• 🔵Blue Group: Pins, Snaps, Tweets, Vines. (Platform-Specific Posts)
• 🟣Purple Group: Hooves, Mane, Tail, White Stripes. (Features Of A Zebra)

Answers to NYT Connections #1,136 (July 21, 2026)

• 🟡Yellow Group: Crop, Halter, Tank, Tube. (Kinds Of Tops)
• 🟢Green Group: App, Driver, Extension, Plugin. (Software Downloads)
• 🔵Blue Group: Book, Lyrics, Music, Orchestration. (Elements Of A Musical)
• 🟣Purple Group: Gram, Kinesis, Prompter, Vision. (Tele___)

Answers to NYT Connections #1,135 (July 20, 2026)

• 🟡Yellow Group: Blare, Herald, Sound, Trumpet. (Announce)
• 🟢Green Group: Button, Icon, Link, Menu. (Things To Click)
• 🔵Blue Group: Bubble Tea, Oyster, Swine, Wisdom. (Associated With Pearls)
• 🟣Purple Group: Alexa, Meadow, Portobello, Sakes. (Starting With Alcohol Beverages)

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How did other solvers do today?

NYT’s early testers rated today’s Connection puzzle 2 out of 5. This puts it in the medium difficulty level. Let us know how you fared in the comments!