You're reading an archived Connections puzzle from Jul 7, 2026 — the daily hints refresh every midnight.

Today's puzzle hints & answers →
Connections sportSports Connections Wordle Spelling Bee Browse all →
NYT Connections · #1122

NYT Connections Hints & Answers (#1122) — July 7, 2026

By ·

Earlier Jul 6 This puzzle Jul 7 Later Jul 8

“Before you lock in any group that feels obvious, check whether a word's most natural meaning is actually a decoy pulling you somewhere it doesn't belong.HALL and STUDY both appeared in Connections #272 (Mar 4, 2024) and play the same role today. FRENCH has appeared several times before — as a famous revolution in Connections #1134 (May 3, 2026), and as a press type in Connections #1074 (Feb 27, 2026).”

NYT Connections hints for July 7, 2026

Three levels of help — a definition for every word, colour-coded group nudges, and a heads-up on the traps. Skip to all answers →

1

Word clues

A spoiler-free definition for every word in the grid. Tap the eye on any card to reveal which colour-group it belongs to.

1 ALL-AMERICANThe highest national honour a college athlete can receive.
2 BERNIEEnds in ERNIE — the rubber-duckie-loving roommate of Bert.
3 COLBERTEnds in BERT — Ernie's tidy, pigeon-fancying best friend.
4 CONSERVATORYThe grand, glassy room where the lead pipe might turn up.
5 DISCOUNTEnds in COUNT — the vampire who loves to count things. Ah ah ah.
6 FRENCHA French Twist is a classic upswept hairstyle.
7 HALLLooks like a school corridor; here it's the entrance room on the Clue board.
8 JOCKInformal label for the sporty kid — not always flattering.
9 KITCHENThe room where the knife lives — fitting for a murder mystery.
10 LEMONA lemon twist is the citrus peel curl dropped into a cocktail.
11 LETTERMANAn athlete who earned the right to wear the school's initial on their jacket.
12 OLIVEROliver Twist — Dickens's hungry orphan who asked for more.
13 PLOTA plot twist is the story turn that makes you gasp.
14 SAN ANSELMOEnds in ELMO — the furry red monster with his own ticklish corner of the street.
15 STUDYLooks like an academic activity; here it's the book-lined room in Clue.
16 TEAM CAPTAINThe player voted to lead the locker room and the huddle.
2

Group hints

Four colour-coded groups, easiest → hardest. Every button reveals the hint, the category name, or a single word — tap only what you need.

See Hint Colonel Mustard could be caught in any of these.
See Group ROOMS IN CLUE
See WordCONSERVATORY
See WordHALL
See WordKITCHEN
See WordSTUDY
See Hint Titles earned on the field, in the gym, or on the roster.
See Group STUDENT-ATHLETE DESIGNATIONS
See WordALL-AMERICAN
See WordJOCK
See WordLETTERMAN
See WordTEAM CAPTAIN
See Hint Say each one aloud and add the same word after — you'll recognise every result.
See Group ___ TWIST
See WordFRENCH
See WordLEMON
See WordOLIVER
See WordPLOT
See Hint A beloved street's residents are hiding inside these words.
See Group ENDING IN "SESAME STREET" CHARACTERS
See WordBERNIE
See WordCOLBERT
See WordDISCOUNT
See WordSAN ANSELMO
3

Words the puzzle wants you to mis-group

Read these before you guess — they're the words most likely to break a streak. Tap for the trap.

1 OLIVER Tap to see why this word traps.
You're probably reading it as a standalone first name — a person, not a phrase — but the puzzle is using it as the opening word of a compound that completes a well-known title.
2 HALL Tap to see why this word traps.
You're probably picturing a school hallway or a Hall of Fame, which pulls it toward an athletic context — but here it's a room in a board game.
3 STUDY Tap to see why this word traps.
You're probably thinking of academic studying, which fits a student theme perfectly — but the puzzle is using it as a room, not an activity.
4 BERNIE Tap to see why this word traps.
You're probably thinking of a famous politician or a movie — but the puzzle is using it for what's tucked inside its final letters, not the celebrity.
5 COLBERT Tap to see why this word traps.
You're probably picturing the TV host — but the puzzle is using it for what's hidden at the end of the word, not the person.

NYT Connections answers for July 7, 2026

All four groups revealed, easiest first. Each card holds the theme, the four words, and why the group works.

Y ROOMS IN CLUE · Yellow · easiest
  • CONSERVATORY
  • HALL
  • KITCHEN
  • STUDY

CONSERVATORY, HALL, KITCHEN and STUDY are all rooms in the board game Clue. STUDY is the sneakiest — its academic meaning pulls solvers toward a student-athlete reading before the Clue connection clicks.

G STUDENT-ATHLETE DESIGNATIONS · Green · easy
  • ALL-AMERICAN
  • JOCK
  • LETTERMAN
  • TEAM CAPTAIN

ALL-AMERICAN, JOCK, LETTERMAN and TEAM CAPTAIN are all designations given to student-athletes. LETTERMAN is the most specific — it refers to an athlete who has officially earned their school's letter by meeting performance standards.

B ___ TWIST · Blue · medium
  • FRENCH
  • LEMON
  • OLIVER
  • PLOT

FRENCH, LEMON, OLIVER and PLOT all precede the word TWIST to make a recognisable phrase or title. OLIVER is the trickiest — most solvers read it as a standalone first name rather than the opening word of a famous compound.

P ENDING IN "SESAME STREET" CHARACTERS · Purple · hardest
  • BERNIE
  • COLBERT
  • DISCOUNT
  • SAN ANSELMO

BERNIE, COLBERT, DISCOUNT and SAN ANSELMO each end with the name of a Sesame Street character: ERNIE, BERT, COUNT and ELMO respectively. DISCOUNT is the hardest to crack — COUNT von Count is easy to forget, and the word looks completely unrelated to any category.

Try another puzzle

Two more NazoKai hints, ready when you are.

Wordle

Today's hint ladder & answer

Open

Spelling Bee

Answers, pangram & word list

Open