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The yellow category groups together words related to making an announcement.
The green and blue groups focus on clickable interface elements and things associated with pearls.
The purple category features a clever wordplay twist involving alcoholic beverages
NYT Connections’ July 20 grid is now live, featuring a wide range of themes. From terms indicating a shout-out, things you have to click on, items associated with pearls, and some alcoholic drinks, today’s grid is exciting yet challenging. However, looking at the words like Blare, Herald, Link, Swine, Bubble Tea, and Meadow doesn’t really show any prominent connection until you give it some thought. Therefore, sound word knowledge is necessary.
If you are struggling with today’s NYT Connections and can’t determine the exact categories, here are the clues and solutions.
NYT experts rate the Connections puzzles out of 5 to hint at the difficulty level. Today’s challenge is rated 3 out of 5. Players’ personal ratings may differ, but experts say that the themes for July 20 are extremely easy.
Here are the hints to make the process easier:
Easiest Group (Yellow): Think of terms that offer you an idea of giving a shout-out to them.
Moderate Group (Green): The green group has the most common words. We use these phrases in our everyday life and click on them.
Challenging Group (Blue): If you’re a person who loves jewelry, you might relate these items to pearls.
Most Difficult Group (Purple): This is the final category, and these words are related to alcoholic beverages.
Also Read: How to Make Your Own NYT Connections Game?
Hopefully, the above hints have directed your thoughts in the right direction. If not, here’s another set of clues to check out:
Yellow Group: BLARE
Green Group: ICON
Blue Group: SWINE
Purple Group: SAKES
Solvers must have reached near the themes of today’s Connections with the above hints, but if there is still confusion, here are the complete solutions:
Yellow Category (ANNOUNCE): BLARE, HERALD, SOUND, TRUMPET
Green Category (THINGS TO CLICK): BUTTON, ICON, LINK, MENU
Blue Category (ASSOCIATED WITH PEARLS): BUBBLE TEA, OYSTER, SWINE, WISDOM
Purple Category (STARTING WITH ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES): ALEXA, MEADOW, PORTOBELLO, SAKES
These are the four categories for today’s puzzle, and hopefully, most players have guessed the word sets without the answer. So, congratulations to all who have solved it!
Unlike traditional crosswords or word searches, NYT Connections asks players to identify subtle links between the given words and form four groups of four. Every day it presents a grid of 16 words, and the objective is to group these words into four sets of four words.
The twist is that each set must be formed around a specific theme. To solve this puzzle, players must be aware of the connection between particular words.
The daily challenge from The New York Times shows how modern word puzzles are evolving. They’re not really stuck on simple vocabulary checks anymore. Instead, these puzzles have become little exercises in associational reasoning and a sort of contextual watchfulness. The July 20 grid once again showed that even the most familiar words can seem unrelated until players shift their angle and consider thematic or cultural links.
Connections make you weigh a few possibilities first before you decide on a grouping. The thought process aligns with real-world decision-making, where incomplete information must be organized into coherent categories.
Also Read: NYT Strands on July 19, 2026: Theme, Spangram, Winning Strategy
