What is the NYT Connections answer for July 29 (#1144)?

The four groups are FASTENERS (NAIL, RIVET, SCREW, STAPLE); NONDESCRIPT (BASIC, MID, PLAIN, VANILLA); UNITS OF WISDOM (GEM, NUGGET, PEARL, WORD); ___BOARDS IN A CLASSROOM (BLACK, CHALK, CORK, WHITE).

Which Connections group is hardest today?

The purple group — "___BOARDS IN A CLASSROOM" — 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.

Wednesday, July 29, 2026#1144

NYT Connections Hints & Answer — Wednesday, July 29

DailyWordHints Editorial July 29

FASTENERS

Easiest

NONDESCRIPT

Easy

UNITS OF WISDOM

Tricky

___BOARDS IN A CLASSROOM

Hardest

Today's NYT Connections groups are FASTENERS (yellow), NONDESCRIPT (green), UNITS OF WISDOM (blue), ___BOARDS IN A CLASSROOM (purple).

CORK

PEARL

BASIC

STAPLE

MID

WORD

CHALK

WHITE

BLACK

VANILLA

GEM

NAIL

RIVET

NUGGET

SCREW

PLAIN

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 #1144, Wednesday, July 29. 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 29 (#1144)?: The four groups are FASTENERS (NAIL, RIVET, SCREW, STAPLE); NONDESCRIPT (BASIC, MID, PLAIN, VANILLA); UNITS OF WISDOM (GEM, NUGGET, PEARL, WORD); ___BOARDS IN A CLASSROOM (BLACK, CHALK, CORK, WHITE).
Which Connections group is hardest today?: The purple group — "___BOARDS IN A CLASSROOM" — 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.