MEDIUMPuzzle #1139

NYT Connections Hints & Answers (#1139) – Today's Puzzle, Jul 24

TODAY'S NYT CONNECTIONS TIP

“Start by locking in the yellow group ("TALK AT LENGTH") first to narrow the grid from 16 to 12 words.”

Written by Naveed Ahmed · Updated: July 24, 2026

← Yesterday's Connections Hint (#1138, Jul 23)

Connections Hint for Each Word Today

Tap any word to see its Connections hint — what it means in today's puzzle, no spoilers.

BABBLE hint: In the context of talk at length, "BABBLE" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

DRONE hint: In the context of talk at length, "DRONE" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

RAMBLE hint: In the context of talk at length, "RAMBLE" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

YAK hint: In the context of talk at length, "YAK" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

HOME RUN hint: In the context of outcomes for a batter, "HOME RUN" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

SINGLE hint: In the context of outcomes for a batter, "SINGLE" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

STRIKEOUT hint: In the context of outcomes for a batter, "STRIKEOUT" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

WALK hint: In the context of outcomes for a batter, "WALK" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

JOG hint: In the context of bring to mind, as a memory, "JOG" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

PROMPT hint: In the context of bring to mind, as a memory, "PROMPT" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

REFRESH hint: In the context of bring to mind, as a memory, "REFRESH" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

SPARK hint: In the context of bring to mind, as a memory, "SPARK" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

CANTER hint: "CANTER" is an auditory homophone that sounds identical to "RELIGIOUS ROLES", acting as a phonetic trick in today's grid.

FRYER hint: "FRYER" is an auditory homophone that sounds identical to "RELIGIOUS ROLES", acting as a phonetic trick in today's grid.

LLAMA hint: "LLAMA" is an auditory homophone that sounds identical to "RELIGIOUS ROLES", acting as a phonetic trick in today's grid.

NONE hint: "NONE" is an auditory homophone that sounds identical to "RELIGIOUS ROLES", acting as a phonetic trick in today's grid.

Hints uncovered0 / 16

Today's NYT Connections Hints for All Four Categories

Reveal progressively: see the category hint first, then the group name, then individual words — stop whenever you have enough.

🟡 Straightforward

🟢 Medium

🔵 Hard

🟣 Tricky

⚠️Traps & Misdirects Hints for Today’s Connections Puzzle

Today’s Connections puzzle includes words intentionally placed to misdirect you into wrong groups. These traps and misdirects hints reveal which words are designed to mislead, so you don’t burn your 4 allowed mistakes on deliberate decoys.

Decoys between TALK AT LENGTH and OUTCOMES FOR A BATTER

Words like BABBLE and HOME RUN appear to overlap in everyday usage, but their true connections belong to separate categories.

Wordplay Red Herrings in "HOMOPHONES OF RELIGIOUS ROLES"

The purple category ("HOMOPHONES OF RELIGIOUS ROLES") uses deceptive associations with CANTER, FRYER, LLAMA, NONE. Look beyond surface definitions to find the hidden theme.

Today's NYT Connections Answers

Click to reveal the complete solution — all four categories.

Category: TALK AT LENGTH (Straightforward) — Answers: BABBLE, DRONE, RAMBLE, YAK

Category: OUTCOMES FOR A BATTER (Medium) — Answers: HOME RUN, SINGLE, STRIKEOUT, WALK

Category: BRING TO MIND, AS A MEMORY (Hard) — Answers: JOG, PROMPT, REFRESH, SPARK

Category: HOMOPHONES OF RELIGIOUS ROLES (Tricky) — Answers: CANTER, FRYER, LLAMA, NONE

Today's NYT Connections Answers Explained

TALK AT LENGTH

The words BABBLE, DRONE, RAMBLE, YAK all share a unique thematic connection as talk at length.

BABBLE

In the context of talk at length, "BABBLE" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

DRONE

In the context of talk at length, "DRONE" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

RAMBLE

In the context of talk at length, "RAMBLE" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

YAK

In the context of talk at length, "YAK" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

OUTCOMES FOR A BATTER

The words HOME RUN, SINGLE, STRIKEOUT, WALK all share a unique thematic connection as outcomes for a batter.

HOME RUN

In the context of outcomes for a batter, "HOME RUN" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

SINGLE

In the context of outcomes for a batter, "SINGLE" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

STRIKEOUT

In the context of outcomes for a batter, "STRIKEOUT" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

WALK

In the context of outcomes for a batter, "WALK" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

BRING TO MIND, AS A MEMORY

The words JOG, PROMPT, REFRESH, SPARK all share a unique thematic connection as bring to mind, as a memory.

JOG

In the context of bring to mind, as a memory, "JOG" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

PROMPT

In the context of bring to mind, as a memory, "PROMPT" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

REFRESH

In the context of bring to mind, as a memory, "REFRESH" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

SPARK

In the context of bring to mind, as a memory, "SPARK" stands out as a clear, defining example within this group.

HOMOPHONES OF RELIGIOUS ROLES

The words CANTER, FRYER, LLAMA, NONE all share a unique thematic connection as homophones of religious roles.

CANTER

"CANTER" is an auditory homophone that sounds identical to "RELIGIOUS ROLES", acting as a phonetic trick in today's grid.

FRYER

"FRYER" is an auditory homophone that sounds identical to "RELIGIOUS ROLES", acting as a phonetic trick in today's grid.

LLAMA

"LLAMA" is an auditory homophone that sounds identical to "RELIGIOUS ROLES", acting as a phonetic trick in today's grid.

NONE

"NONE" is an auditory homophone that sounds identical to "RELIGIOUS ROLES", acting as a phonetic trick in today's grid.

What Makes Today’s NYT Connections Puzzle Tricky?

HOME RUN, SINGLE, STRIKEOUT, WALK sit alongside JOG, PROMPT, REFRESH, SPARK and phrases like CANTER, FRYER, LLAMA, NONE — a collision of distinct word groups and subtle misdirects.

The editor's sharpest trick is hiding a word-within-a-word: some of the multi-word phrases are not grouped by their topic but by what their first word secretly means.

How to Use Connections Hints

Everyone playing NYT Connections puzzle gets stuck at a different point. Some players can’t figure out a single word. Others have three groups solved and can’t find the fourth. Where you are stuck determines which connection hint you need.

A word in the puzzle has an unfamiliar meaning

Some words in today’s NYT Connections puzzle are uncommon. Connections editor Wyna Liu often uses words with specific or less familiar meanings, particularly in the green, blue, and purple categories. If you don’t know what a word means, you cannot reliably place it in a group.

Recommendation: Use the Word Hint. It tells you what the word means in the context of today’s puzzle. Tap any word directly on the board above to see its hint.

No groups are forming after reading all sixteen words

The connection between words is often not obvious from their meanings alone — categories are built around themes that require a specific angle to see. These category-level clues are the most useful hints.

Recommendation: Use the Category Hint. It points you toward the theme of a category without revealing the category name or which words belong to it. Tap “Yellow Category Hint” first.

You have a possible group but aren’t ready to guess

You think four words belong together but you’re not confident enough to guess. If you’re unsure, don’t guess yet — a wrong guess costs you one of your four mistakes.

Recommendation: Use the Category Name. It reveals the exact name of the category without showing you which words belong to it.

One word seems to fit more than one group

You have built a group of four words but one word in it could also fit somewhere else. NYT Connections editor Wyna Liu deliberately places misleading words on the board.

Recommendation: Use the Traps and Misdirects Hints. It identifies the specific misleading words in today’s puzzle and explains why they don’t belong where you think they do.

You know the category but can’t find all four words

You have identified the theme of a category but can’t find all four words that belong to it.

Recommendation: Use the Word Reveal. It uncovers one masked word at a time without revealing the full group. This is the most precise connection hint available.

One mistake left with two groups unsolved

You have one mistake remaining and two groups unsolved. If you guess wrong here, the game ends and NYT reveals all the answers automatically.

Recommendation: Do not guess yet. Use the Category Name for both remaining groups first. If that is still not enough, tap “Category Words” and reveal one word at a time.

You want today’s answers without solving the puzzle

Use the Answers section. It shows all four category names and the four words that belong to each one.

Recommendation: Go to the Answers section.

The puzzle is over but a category still doesn’t make sense

You can see the four groups and their words but the connection between them isn’t clear.

Recommendation: Use the Answer Explanation. It tells you exactly what connects the words in each category and why each individual word belongs there.

Browse Past Puzzles

View answers and hints for every previous NYT Connections puzzle.

Puzzle Archive →

Frequently Asked Questions

NYT Connections is a daily word puzzle by The New York Times where you group 16 words into 4 categories of 4 words each. Each category has a hidden theme color-coded by difficulty.

Yellow is the most straightforward category, Green is medium difficulty, Blue is harder, and Purple contains the trickiest, most misleading groupings.

Yes, NYT Connections is free to play once per day on the New York Times Games website.

A new NYT Connections puzzle releases every day at midnight in your local time zone (12:00 AM ET for US Eastern Time).

Naveed Ahmed

@NaveedAhmedDev

Lead Writer & Connections Puzzle Analyst

Naveed is a dedicated puzzle strategist and word game analyst who breaks down daily NYT Connections categories, uncovers tricky wordplay patterns, and delivers progressive, spoiler-free clues to help thousands of players solve every puzzle.