NYT Connections Answer (June 26): Salads, Suits, & Sneaky Card Tricks. Check Out Solution

NYT Connections Answers: Another day, another tangled web of words from The New York Times. Thursday’s Connections puzzle (#745) is out, and if you’re stuck in a loop of “Suits” and “Sewing” with no idea where to place “Lovelace” or “Pinball,” don’t sweat it — we’ve decoded the themes, teased the traps, and laid out the full answers to help you crack it.
Connections, the daily word game that has grown into a morning ritual for many puzzleheads, tasks players with grouping 16 seemingly unrelated words into four themed clusters. But don’t be fooled — this isn’t your average word match. NYT throws in clever misdirects, thematic curveballs, and enough red herrings to fill an ocean.
Let’s dissect today’s challenge.
<h3 data-start=”873″ data-end=”915″>Hint Trail: Start with the Salad</h3>
If you were circling Lettuce, Cheese, Protein, and Dressing, you’re on the right track. This group is all about what goes into a hearty bowl of salad. That’s your Yellow group — traditionally the easiest — and it lived up to its reputation today.
Next up is Green: machines. No, not just any machine — think old-school and mechanical. The correct set here includes Vending, Pinball, Sewing, and the cryptic Enigma.
<h3 data-start=”1349″ data-end=”1397″>TV Courtroom Drama Meets the Blue Tier</h3>
The Blue group honed in on legal dramas. If Suits made you think of fashion, it’s time to reconsider. It stands alongside Matlock, Goliath, and Damages — all well-known legal television shows.
This category tripped up many solvers, especially with words like Goliath floating ambiguously in the grid.
<h3 data-start=”1717″ data-end=”1763″>Purple Puzzle: It’s All in the Cards</h3>
Purple is notorious for being the most difficult category of the bunch — and today was no exception. The clue? Every word ends with something related to playing cards.
That’s right: Bojack, Hawking, Lovelace, and Mcqueen each sneakily finish with card names — Jack, King, Ace, and Queen. This “hidden in plain sight” theme fooled plenty.
<h3 data-start=”2124″ data-end=”2182″>Full Answers for NYT Connections #745 (June 26):</h3>
<ul>
<li data-start=”2186″ data-end=”2258″>Yellow (Components of a Salad): Cheese, Dressing, Lettuce, Protein</li>
<li data-start=”2261″ data-end=”2326″>Green (Kinds of Machines): Enigma, Pinball, Sewing, Vending</li>
<li data-start=”2329″ data-end=”2388″>Blue (Legal Dramas): Damages, Goliath, Matlock, Suits</li>
<li data-start=”2391″ data-end=”2467″>Purple (Ending With Playing Cards): Bojack, Hawking, Lovelace, Mcqueen</li>
</ul>
And remember: “‘Sewing’, ‘suits’, and ‘dressing’ belong to different groups.” That cryptic tip might have helped — or thrown you off more!
If you didn’t get it today, no worries. You’re one step closer to beating tomorrow’s brain-teaser.