If today’s New York Times Connections grid has you burning through your mistakes, you are not alone. Puzzle #1146 features some heavy misdirection, with several words seemingly fitting into games or food themes before pulling the rug out from under you.

Below are strategic, spoiler-free hints to help you group today’s words on your own, followed by the exact categories and answers at the bottom of the page.

Today’s Connections Strategy & Commentary

Watch out for the red herrings today. At first glance, words like Mushroom and Plumber look like an obvious match for general food or job themes, while Date and Spear could easily be sorted into fruit or tool groups. Committing to those false groups early will cost you chances. We recommend checking how each word fits into specific phrases or franchises first. Separating action words, character names, modified terms, and playful phrases will make the rest much easier to manage.

Connections Hints Today: Category Clues

If you just need a nudge to get your brain moving in the right direction, here are clues for the four color-coded groups:

🟨 Yellow Group Hint (Easiest): Words that mean to form or build something.
🟩 Green Group Hint (Medium): Characters or roles often seen in Super Mario games.
🟦 Blue Group Hint (Hard): Words that become a fruit when you add a letter to the start.
🟪 Purple Group Hint (Tricky): These words complete the phrase “Merry __“.

Stuck on one word? If you have Gleek, try thinking of common lighthearted phrases rather than its literal meaning. It fits the trickier Purple group today!

⚠️ Spoiler Warning: Beyond this point lies the full solution for Puzzle #1146. If you still want to solve the grid yourself using the clues above, do not scroll down.

NYT Connections Answers Today: Friday July 31, 2026

Here are the completed categories and groupings for today’s puzzle:

🟨 Yellow Group: Construct

Fashion
Model
Mold
Shape

🟩 Green Group: Super Mario Figures

Dinosaur
Mushroom
Plumber
Princess

🟦 Blue Group: Fruits Plus Starting Letter

Dapple
JDate
Slime
Spear

🟪 Purple Group: Starting With Merriments

Cheerios
Fungus
Gleek
Joystick

Previous Answer

NYT Connections Answer for July 30, 2026 (Puzzle #1145): Virtuous, Activities With Multiple Balls, Cruise Lines, On The _, To Mean “Precise”

Daily NYT Puzzle Hub

Keep your winning streak alive across the entire NYT Games ecosystem. Check out our daily guides for today’s other popular puzzles:

Join the Discussion

Did you spot the Mario theme right away, or did the fruit modification group take you longer to figure out? Share your results grid or talk about which category gave you the most trouble in the comments below!

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NYT Connections Hints & Answers Today: July 31, 2026 (Puzzle #1146)