NYT Connections Hints for July 20, 2026 — Puzzle #1135

Sixteen words, four hidden categories. Hints reveal structure, then the grouping.

Hints and answers for NYT Connections #1135 on July 20, 2026: how many groups there are, a masked theme for each group, then the four categories one at a time, then all sixteen words and the full grouping.

Puzzle date: July 20, 2026 (2026-07-20) · #1135 · Source: the game's public daily data (https://www.nytimes.com/svc/connections/v2/2026-07-20.json). Hints are derived from that day's verified answer data — no invented clues, difficulty scores or word claims.

1. The shape of the puzzle

There are 4 categories of 4 words each (16 words total).

2. The four themes, masked

Each theme below keeps its word shapes and the first letter of every word:

A _ _ _ _ _ _ _
T _ _ _ _ _ T _ C _ _ _ _
A _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ W _ _ _ P _ _ _ _ _
S _ _ _ _ _ _ _ W _ _ _ A _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ B _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

3. Reveal a theme, one at a time

Show theme 1

ANNOUNCE

Show theme 2

THINGS TO CLICK

Show theme 3

ASSOCIATED WITH PEARLS

Show theme 4

STARTING WITH ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES

NYT Connections answer for July 20, 2026 — puzzle #1135

ANNOUNCE

SOUND, TRUMPET, HERALD, BLARE

THINGS TO CLICK

BUTTON, MENU, ICON, LINK

ASSOCIATED WITH PEARLS

OYSTER, WISDOM, BUBBLE TEA, SWINE

STARTING WITH ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES

MEADOW, PORTOBELLO, SAKES, ALEXA

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