A little help. Your own aha.

Connections #1134
hints & answers for July 19, 2026

Keep the satisfaction of the solve. Get a nudge for one group, reveal a category, or check the answers at your own pace.

This reference always shows July 19, 2026. It is released in at least one timezone; every answer stays closed until you reveal it.

Which group has you stuck?

Pick a colour. Reveal one step at a time.

Yellow group

Straightforward

1/4
First-letter clue

Look for four entries beginning with B, F, R and S. These initials are in sorted order.

Show one word

BREAKER belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

CIRCUIT COMPONENTS

Reveal all four words
  • BREAKER
  • FUSE
  • RELAY
  • SWITCH

Green group

A little trickier

2/4
First-letter clue

Look for four entries beginning with C, J, P and S. These initials are in sorted order.

Show one word

CONNECT belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

DIGITAL COUPLING VERBS

Reveal all four words
  • CONNECT
  • JOIN
  • PAIR
  • SYNC

Blue group

More challenging

3/4
First-letter clue

Look for four entries beginning with D, F, R and S. These initials are in sorted order.

Show one word

DRAIN belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

THINGS TOILETS DO

Reveal all four words
  • DRAIN
  • FLUSH
  • REFILL
  • SWIRL

Purple group

Wordplay & surprises

4/4
Wordplay hint

Try adding the same ending to each entry.

Show one word

GAME belongs in this group.

Reveal the category

___ FACE EXPRESSIONS

Reveal all four words
  • GAME
  • LONG
  • POKER
  • STRAIGHT

Each entry comes before "FACE EXPRESSIONS" to form a word, expression or name: GAME → GAME FACE EXPRESSIONS; LONG → LONG FACE EXPRESSIONS; POKER → POKER FACE EXPRESSIONS; STRAIGHT → STRAIGHT FACE EXPRESSIONS.

Show categories only
  • Yellow: CIRCUIT COMPONENTS
  • Green: DIGITAL COUPLING VERBS
  • Blue: THINGS TOILETS DO
  • Purple: ___ FACE EXPRESSIONS

Ready for the full solution?

All four categories and their words, together.

Reveal all four answers

Yellow

CIRCUIT COMPONENTS

BREAKER · FUSE · RELAY · SWITCH

Green

DIGITAL COUPLING VERBS

CONNECT · JOIN · PAIR · SYNC

Blue

THINGS TOILETS DO

DRAIN · FLUSH · REFILL · SWIRL

Purple

___ FACE EXPRESSIONS

GAME · LONG · POKER · STRAIGHT

This puzzle’s recorded solution

The date and puzzle number identify this exact board. Use the individual group controls to compare its recorded categories and words, then return to the archive to find another puzzle.

About the answers and hints

Categories and answers follow the recorded NYT puzzle. Our hints are independent: some are original category clues, while others give the first letters of the four words. Each hint is labelled so you can choose how much help to take.

Group colours follow the puzzle’s yellow, green, blue and purple order, from the most straightforward to the trickiest. Your own experience may differ. The reference tiles may appear in a different order from your game. Picture puzzles have separately hidden descriptions, since a description can give away the wordplay.

The daily page starts with the UTC puzzle date and, with JavaScript enabled, checks the puzzle for your local time zone. Every reveal starts closed when the date changes. Play Connections at The New York Times or contact us about a correction.