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NYT Connections · #1107

NYT Connections Hints & Answers (#1107) — June 22, 2026

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“Scan for words that feel out of place in any obvious group — if a word resists every category you try, look at what it starts with rather than what it means.TIMES and X both carry history: they appeared together in Connections #209 (Jan 5, 2024), where they were part of a group about symbols that share a common meaning.”

NYT Connections hints for June 22, 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 ●A raised or centred dot used in formal maths to show multiplication without the letter X.
2 ALPHAThe wolf at the top of the pack — not a phonetics label here.
3 BANGKOKThe Thai capital — but strip away the city and you find BANG at the start.
4 BOOMERA generational label hiding BOOM right at the front.
5 BYAs in 'three by four' — the spoken word for multiplying dimensions.
6 HEADThe person in charge; the one at the front of the table.
7 LEADTo be out front — not the metal, not a pronunciation note.
8 POPSICLEThe frozen treat on a stick — opens with POP.
9 POWDERA fine granular substance — the sneakiest of the four, with POW tucked at the start.
10 PRIMARYFirst and most important — the top priority.
11 SHORTDescribes a vowel with a clipped sound, like the 'a' in 'cat'.
12 SILENTA letter that appears in spelling but makes no sound, like the 'k' in 'knight'.
13 SOFTDescribes a consonant taking a gentle sound — the 'c' in 'ceiling', not 'cat'.
14 STRESSEDThe syllable you hit harder when you say a word aloud.
15 TIMESThe everyday English word for the multiplication operation.
16 XThe classic multiplication symbol taught in primary school.
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 A wolf pack, a classroom, a boardroom — one creature or person runs the show.
See Group DOMINANT
See WordALPHA
See WordHEAD
See WordLEAD
See WordPRIMARY
See Hint A mathematician would write one of these between two numbers on a whiteboard.
See Group MULTIPLICATION INDICATORS
See WordBY
See WordTIMES
See WordX
See Word●
See Hint How you say a letter can change everything about a word.
See Group PRONUNCIATION DESCRIPTORS
See WordSHORT
See WordSILENT
See WordSOFT
See WordSTRESSED
See Hint Each word has a comic-book sound effect buried at its front.
See Group STARTING WITH EXPLOSIVE ONOMATOPOEIA
See WordBANGKOK
See WordBOOMER
See WordPOPSICLE
See WordPOWDER
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 LEAD Tap to see why this word traps.
You're probably thinking of the metal element or the act of guiding — both are real meanings, but the puzzle is using a third sense entirely, one that has nothing to do with chemistry or phonetics.
2 SHORT Tap to see why this word traps.
You're probably reading it as an adjective meaning brief or small, but here it's a technical term describing how a vowel sounds when spoken aloud.
3 BANGKOK Tap to see why this word traps.
You're probably seeing the capital city of Thailand — that's the surface reading, but the puzzle isn't grouping world capitals.

NYT Connections answers for June 22, 2026

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

Y DOMINANT · Yellow · easiest
  • ALPHA
  • HEAD
  • LEAD
  • PRIMARY

ALPHA, HEAD, LEAD and PRIMARY all mean dominant or first in rank. LEAD is the sneakiest — its pronunciation ambiguity and metal-element meaning pull solvers toward other categories before the ranking sense clicks.

G MULTIPLICATION INDICATORS · Green · easy
  • BY
  • TIMES
  • X
  • ●

BY, TIMES, X and ● are all ways to indicate multiplication. The bullet ● is the most surprising — it is used as a multiplication dot in formal mathematical notation.

B PRONUNCIATION DESCRIPTORS · Blue · medium
  • SHORT
  • SILENT
  • SOFT
  • STRESSED

SHORT, SILENT, SOFT and STRESSED are all terms used to describe how a letter or syllable is pronounced. SOFT is the subtlest — it specifically describes consonants like C or G when they take a softer sound, as in 'city' or 'gem'.

P STARTING WITH EXPLOSIVE ONOMATOPOEIA · Purple · hardest
  • BANGKOK
  • BOOMER
  • POPSICLE
  • POWDER

BANGKOK, BOOMER, POPSICLE and POWDER each begin with an explosive onomatopoeia: BANG, BOOM, POP and POW respectively. POWDER is the hardest to spot — POW is only three letters and the rest of the word disguises it completely.

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