What is the NYT Connections answer for July 21 (#1136)?

The four groups are KINDS OF TOPS (CROP, HALTER, TANK, TUBE); SOFTWARE DOWNLOADS (APP, DRIVER, EXTENSION, PLUGIN); ELEMENTS OF A MUSICAL (BOOK, LYRICS, MUSIC, ORCHESTRATION); TELE___ (GRAM, KINESIS, PROMPTER, VISION).

Which Connections group is hardest today?

The purple group — "TELE___" — is the trickiest, as it usually relies on wordplay or a hidden connection rather than a straightforward category.

What do the Connections colors mean?

Yellow is the easiest group, then green, then blue, and purple is the hardest — often involving wordplay or a hidden twist.

Tuesday, July 21, 2026#1136

NYT Connections Hints & Answer — Tuesday, July 21

DailyWordHints Editorial July 21

KINDS OF TOPS

Easiest

SOFTWARE DOWNLOADS

Easy

ELEMENTS OF A MUSICAL

Tricky

TELE___

Hardest

Today's NYT Connections groups are KINDS OF TOPS (yellow), SOFTWARE DOWNLOADS (green), ELEMENTS OF A MUSICAL (blue), TELE___ (purple).

MUSIC

GRAM

DRIVER

VISION

TUBE

CROP

BOOK

APP

ORCHESTRATION

EXTENSION

TANK

KINESIS

PROMPTER

HALTER

LYRICS

PLUGIN

Hints by group

yellowEasiest

greenEasy

blueTricky

purpleHardest

Full answers below

Today’s answers

yellowEasiest

greenEasy

blueTricky

purpleHardest

See all past Connections puzzles →

Today's Connections hints (no answers yet)

Here are spoiler-free nudges for NYT Connections #1136, Tuesday, July 21. Reveal one color at a time and work from the easiest group (yellow) to the trickiest (purple).

How to use these hints

Each clue is written so it never names any of the sixteen words — it just points you in the right direction. Open the full answer only once you're truly stuck.

Strategy for solving today's grid

Lock in the group you're most confident about first to shrink the board, but resist the obvious four-of-a-kind — the puzzle almost always plants a word that fits two themes. Save the purple group for last; it usually hides the wordplay twist.

Frequently asked questions

What is the NYT Connections answer for July 21 (#1136)?: The four groups are KINDS OF TOPS (CROP, HALTER, TANK, TUBE); SOFTWARE DOWNLOADS (APP, DRIVER, EXTENSION, PLUGIN); ELEMENTS OF A MUSICAL (BOOK, LYRICS, MUSIC, ORCHESTRATION); TELE___ (GRAM, KINESIS, PROMPTER, VISION).
Which Connections group is hardest today?: The purple group — "TELE___" — is the trickiest, as it usually relies on wordplay or a hidden connection rather than a straightforward category.
What do the Connections colors mean?: Yellow is the easiest group, then green, then blue, and purple is the hardest — often involving wordplay or a hidden twist.