Today’s NYT Connections Game #1142 for July 27 serves up four clean themes across 16 words, from gymnastics equipment to UI symbols.
There’s a friendly entry point if you spot the apparatus, a midgame of literal shapes, and a trickier quartet that hides in plain sight.
SPOILER WARNING: Answers and specific groupings are revealed below — don’t read on if you want to solve the puzzle yourself.
Today’s NYT Connections words
Here are the 16 words that appeared on the board.
- CART | HORSE | CARROT | STICK
- KNITTING NEEDLE | MAGNIFYING GLASS | BEAM | GRAVEYARD
- BELL | ICICLE | RINGS | HEART
- PARADIGM | STALACTITE | DOPPLER | VAULT
Today’s NYT Connections hints
One-line, spoiler-light nudges for each group.
- 🟡 Yellow: Four pieces of equipment you’d expect to find in an Olympic gymnastics lineup.
- 🟢 Green: Four objects that taper to a point or narrow tip.
- 🔵 Blue: Four different kinds of “shifts” — some literal, some figurative.
- 🟣 Purple: Four symbols you commonly see on shopping sites and other web interfaces.
Today’s NYT Connections group titles
The official group titles for today’s puzzle.
- 🟡 Yellow: GYMNASTICS APPARATUS
- 🟢 Green: LONG TAPERED THINGS
- 🔵 Blue: KINDS OF SHIFTS
- 🟣 Purple: ICONS ON A SHOPPING SITE
What are today’s NYT Connections answers?
Below are the four correct groups and their member words.
| Colour | Group | Words |
|---|---|---|
| 🟡 Yellow | GYMNASTICS APPARATUS | BEAM, HORSE, RINGS, VAULT |
| 🟢 Green | LONG TAPERED THINGS | CARROT, ICICLE, KNITTING NEEDLE, STALACTITE |
| 🔵 Blue | KINDS OF SHIFTS | DOPPLER, GRAVEYARD, PARADIGM, STICK |
| 🟣 Purple | ICONS ON A SHOPPING SITE | BELL, CART, HEART, MAGNIFYING GLASS |
Today’s Connections — expert analysis
The most natural entry was the Yellow set — BEAM, HORSE, RINGS and VAULT are unambiguous gymnastics pieces, so spotting any two of them (say BEAM and VAULT) makes the rest click quickly. That tidy quartet explains why solvers cleared Yellow first.
The hardest group was Purple, despite its everyday theme. BELL, CART, HEART and MAGNIFYING GLASS are certainly icons, but each word is also a perfectly ordinary noun that tempts misclassification: CART looks like a vehicle that could sit with HORSE in a different mental grouping, BELL can be read as a sound or object rather than a UI symbol, and MAGNIFYING GLASS invites literal interpretations. The Blue set (DOPPLER, GRAVEYARD, PARADIGM, STICK) was cleverly seeded with plausible overlaps — STICK might lure you toward the Green tapered objects, while DOPPLER doesn’t scream “shift” until you pair it with PARADIGM or GRAVEYARD.
If you’re stuck on your first safe guess, aim for BEAM or HORSE — the gymnastics cluster is the lowest-risk move. After that, check for a tapered theme with CARROT, ICICLE or STALACTITE before committing to anything that could be a UI icon or a “shift.”
Difficulty: 3/5 — a mix of obvious sets and a few misleading, multi-use words.
Yesterday’s NYT Connections answers (Game #1141)
For comparison, here are yesterday’s four groups and their words.
- 🟡 Yellow (BABY MILESTONES): CRAWLING, FIRST WORDS, ROLLING OVER, SOLID FOOD
- 🟢 Green (OUTMODED CONSUMER TECH): BLACKBERRY, DISCMAN, DVD PLAYER, PLASMA TV
- 🔵 Blue (EXPRESSIONS FOR RAIN): APRIL SHOWERS, LIQUID SUNSHINE, SCOTCH MIST, WET WEATHER
- 🟣 Purple (WHAT “SHELL” MIGHT REFER TO): CARAPACE, GAS STATION, PASTRY CRUST, ROWING BOAT
What is NYT Connections?
NYT Connections is a daily word game in which you sort 16 words into four groups of four based on shared themes. Groups can be literal, figurative, or rely on common phrases and compound words.
Each puzzle rewards pattern-spotting and careful second-guessing: obvious links appear alongside words meant to mislead or cross categories, so flexibility and stepwise elimination win the day.
How to play NYT Connections
- Select four words that you think form a group; confirm to lock them in.
- Repeat to find all four groups. You can make limited mistakes before the puzzle ends.
- Groups may be literal objects, phrases, or thematic concepts — reassess if a locked group leaves impossible leftovers.
Past week’s NYT Connections answers
Missed a day? Full solutions from earlier this week, newest first.
Game #1140 — July 25
- 🟡 SPANISH RELATIVES: ABUELA, HIJO, MADRE, PRIMO
- 🟢 START TO CRY, WITH “UP”: CHOKE, MIST, TEAR, WELL
- 🔵 AFRICAN CURRENCIES: KWANZA, LEONE, NAIRA, RAND
- 🟣 STRIP ___: CLUB, MALL, POKER, STEAK
Game #1139 — July 24
- 🟡 TALK AT LENGTH: BABBLE, DRONE, RAMBLE, YAK
- 🟢 OUTCOMES FOR A BATTER: HOME RUN, SINGLE, STRIKEOUT, WALK
- 🔵 BRING TO MIND, AS A MEMORY: JOG, PROMPT, REFRESH, SPARK
- 🟣 HOMOPHONES OF RELIGIOUS ROLES: CANTER, FRYER, LLAMA, NONE
Game #1138 — July 23
- 🟡 SPHERICAL THINGS: BASEBALL, GLOBE, MARBLE, ORANGE
- 🟢 IN AN ANXIOUS STATE: EXCITED, FEBRILE, FRENETIC, INTENSE
- 🔵 PARTS OF AN AIRPORT: APRON, HANGAR, RUNWAY, TERMINAL
- 🟣 ENDING IN GEOMETRY TERMS: APPOINT, DEPLANE, FELINE, JANGLE
Game #1137 — July 22
- 🟡 SYMPTOMS OF AN ALLERGIC REACTION: HIVES, ITCHING, RASH, REDNESS
- 🟢 ON A GOLF SCORECARD: HOLE, PAR, SCORE, STROKES
- 🔵 PLATFORM-SPECIFIC POSTS: PINS, SNAPS, TWEETS, VINES
- 🟣 FEATURES OF A ZEBRA: HOOVES, MANE, TAIL, WHITE STRIPES
Game #1136 — July 21
- 🟡 KINDS OF TOPS: CROP, HALTER, TANK, TUBE
- 🟢 SOFTWARE DOWNLOADS: APP, DRIVER, EXTENSION, PLUGIN
- 🔵 ELEMENTS OF A MUSICAL: BOOK, LYRICS, MUSIC, ORCHESTRATION
- 🟣 TELE___: GRAM, KINESIS, PROMPTER, VISION
Game #1135 — July 20
- 🟡 ANNOUNCE: BLARE, HERALD, SOUND, TRUMPET
- 🟢 THINGS TO CLICK: BUTTON, ICON, LINK, MENU
- 🔵 ASSOCIATED WITH PEARLS: BUBBLE TEA, OYSTER, SWINE, WISDOM
- 🟣 STARTING WITH ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES: ALEXA, MEADOW, PORTOBELLO, SAKES
More daily puzzle help from HashTechWave
- Today’s NYT Strands hints, spangram and answers
- Today’s NYT Spelling Bee answers and pangram
- Today’s Wordle hints, clues and answer
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What time does a new NYT Connections puzzle unlock?
A brand-new puzzle drops every single night at midnight local time across your specific region’s time zone on NYT Connection official site.
Why do some words seem to fit into two different groups?
The puzzle is specifically designed to include “decoys” or overlapping vocabulary. Always look for a backup configuration of words before locking in an early guess to protect your attempt counter.
Can I review answers to older puzzles?
Yes — we keep the past week of solutions right here on this page. Scroll up to the “Past week’s NYT Connections answers” section for every recent grid, newest first, plus a full breakdown of yesterday’s puzzle.
