NYT Connections · #1116
NYT Connections Hints & Answers (#1116) — July 1, 2026
Lock in Yellow first — those four words have a life outside geography that the others don't. Once they're gone, the remaining place names are easier to sort.
CHICAGO has appeared in Connections four times before — as a musical, a rock band, and twice in film-related categories, most recently as a Best Picture winner in Connections #762 (May 28, 2025). CHINA just appeared last week in Connections #1196 (Jun 24, 2026) as a classic wedding gift. Both carry a lot of history, but today each fits a different group than you may expect.
Traps & Misdirects for July 1, 2026
The decoys built into this puzzle — and why each one bites.
CHINA Decoy
You're probably thinking of the country — but here the puzzle uses it as a product, a type of ceramic ware, not the place itself.
CHICAGO Decoy
You're probably picturing the city or the band — but the puzzle is using it in a completely different domain, one that has nothing to do with geography or music.
SINGAPORE Decoy
You're likely reading it as a country or a potential film title — but the puzzle is using it in a context that has nothing to do with geography or cinema.
GUINEA-BISSAU Decoy
You're probably reading it as a single country name, but the puzzle is using it because another country name is hiding at its very start.
INDIANAPOLIS Decoy
You're probably thinking of the Indiana city or a racing event, but the puzzle cares about the country name buried at the beginning of the word.
NYT Connections Word Clues for July 1, 2026
Spoiler-free meaning for every word in the grid.
CASABLANCA
The 1942 Humphrey Bogart classic that won Best Picture at the 1944 Oscars.
CHAMPAGNE
The sparkling wine named after the French region where it was first produced.
CHICAGO
The 2002 musical film that took Best Picture at the 2003 Oscars — not the band or the city.
CHINA
Fine ceramic tableware — named after the country, but here it's the product, not the place.
COLOGNE
A light perfume named after the German city of Köln, where it originated.
CUBA
The Caribbean country in Cuba Libre — rum, cola and lime.
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
Starts with DOMINICA, the small Caribbean island nation just to its northwest.
FARGO
The Coen Brothers' 1996 crime film, nominated for Best Picture at the 1997 Oscars.
GUINEA-BISSAU
Starts with GUINEA — itself a country in West Africa, making this the most disorienting entry in the group.
INDIANAPOLIS
The Indiana capital that opens with INDIA — easy to miss when you're thinking about racing.
LIMERICK
A five-line comic poem — named after the Irish city, though the exact origin story is disputed.
LONG ISLAND
The New York region in Long Island Iced Tea — famously, it contains no tea.
MOSCOW
The Russian capital in the Moscow Mule — vodka, ginger beer and lime in a copper mug.
MUNICH
Spielberg's 2005 thriller about the aftermath of the 1972 Olympics, nominated for Best Picture.
NIGERIA
The West African nation that opens with NIGER, its landlocked northern neighbour.
SINGAPORE
The city-state in the Singapore Sling — a gin-based cocktail created at Raffles Hotel.
NYT Connections Hints for July 1, 2026
Reveal exactly what you need — a hint, the group name, or a single word.
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NYT Connections Answers for July 1, 2026
Full spoilers — all four groups revealed.
Yellow group
Things named after places
- CHAMPAGNE
- CHINA
- COLOGNE
- LIMERICK
CHAMPAGNE, CHINA, COLOGNE and LIMERICK are all everyday things — a sparkling wine, ceramic ware, a fragrance, and a five-line poem — that take their names from specific places. CHINA is the sneakiest: most solvers see the country first and miss that it's also the word for fine porcelain.
Green group
Best picture winners/nominees
- CASABLANCA
- CHICAGO
- FARGO
- MUNICH
CASABLANCA, CHICAGO, FARGO and MUNICH are all Oscar Best Picture winners or nominees. CASABLANCA won in 1944, CHICAGO won in 2003, FARGO was nominated in 1997, and MUNICH was nominated in 2006.
Blue group
Places in cocktail names
- CUBA
- LONG ISLAND
- MOSCOW
- SINGAPORE
CUBA, LONG ISLAND, MOSCOW and SINGAPORE each appear in a famous cocktail name: Cuba Libre, Long Island Iced Tea, Moscow Mule and Singapore Sling. LONG ISLAND is the most distinctive — it's the only one that isn't a country or capital city.
Purple group
Starting with countries
- DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
- GUINEA-BISSAU
- INDIANAPOLIS
- NIGERIA
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, GUINEA-BISSAU, INDIANAPOLIS and NIGERIA each begin with a country name: DOMINICA, GUINEA, INDIA and NIGER respectively. GUINEA-BISSAU is the cruelest entry — GUINEA is itself a country, hidden inside the name of another country.