Connections Puzzle #1132: Play Free — July 17, 2026
Connections Puzzle #1132 (Friday, July 17, 2026) — Sort 16 words into 4 groups: 🟨 Grand Finale, 🟩 Seen In An Arcade, 🟦 Four Groups Of Four, 🟪 Ending In Parts Of A Car. Play this puzzle for free at ConnectionsSports.com. Use hints if stuck, track your stats, and share your results!
Connections is the ultimate daily word puzzle game that challenges your ability to find hidden connections between 16 seemingly unrelated words. Inspired by the massively popular NYT Connections format, this free version lets you play unlimited puzzles every day without any paywall.
Every day, a new puzzle is released with 16 words arranged in a 4×4 grid. Your mission is to sort them into 4 groups of 4 words, where each group shares a common theme. Themes can range from simple categories like "Types of Fruit" to trickier wordplay like "Words that follow 'Fire'."
How to Play Connections
Playing Connections is simple but addictive. Here's how to get started:
- Study the Grid: You are presented with 16 words in a 4×4 grid. Take a moment to read all the words carefully before making any selections.
- Find the Connections: Look for groups of 4 words that share a common theme. This could be anything from "Shades of Blue" to "Words that mean 'Big'" or "Famous Johns."
- Select & Submit: Click on 4 words you believe belong together, then hit the Submit button. If you're correct, the group is revealed with its category name and color.
- Watch Your Mistakes: You only get 4 mistakes before the game ends. If you're "one away" (3 out of 4 correct), the game will let you know.
- Share Your Results: After completing the puzzle, share your color-coded results on social media to compare with friends!
Difficulty Colors: 🟨 Yellow (easiest) → 🟩 Green (moderate) → 🟦 Blue (tricky) → 🟪 Purple (hardest, often wordplay). Pro Tip: Solve the easiest category first to eliminate red herring words!
Tips & Strategies for Connections
- Start with what you know: If you immediately spot a clear group (like "Types of Pasta"), solve it first to narrow down the remaining words.
- Watch for words with multiple meanings: Words like "CRANE" could refer to the bird, the machine, or the verb. Think about which meaning the puzzle designers intended.
- Look for wordplay in the purple category: The hardest group often involves puns, anagrams, hidden words, or unexpected abstract connections.
- Use the Shuffle button: Rearranging the tiles can help you see connections you might have missed.
- Process of elimination: Once you've solved 2-3 groups, the remaining words often become much clearer.
Why Play Connections on ConnectionsSports.com?
- Unlimited Play: Play as many puzzles as you want from our extensive archive.
- Complete Archive: Access all past puzzles and replay your favorites anytime.
- Progressive Hints: Stuck on a puzzle? Use our hint system that gradually reveals clues without spoiling the answer.
- Track Your Stats: Monitor your win rate, streak, average mistakes, and solve time.
- 100% Free: No subscriptions, no paywalls — just pure puzzle fun.
Explore More Puzzles
Love word puzzles? Check out our other puzzle collections:
Sports Connections
Sports-themed daily puzzle
Connections Archive
Browse all past puzzles
Daily Hints
Hints & answers today
Create Puzzle
Build your own puzzle
Frequently Asked Questions
Connections is a daily word puzzle game where you sort 16 words into 4 groups of 4 based on a shared theme. Each group is color-coded by difficulty: Yellow (easiest), Green (moderate), Blue (tricky), and Purple (hardest). A new puzzle is available every day!
You are allowed up to 4 mistakes per puzzle. If you use all 4 mistakes, the game ends and all remaining categories are revealed. The game will also tell you when you are "one away" — meaning 3 of your 4 selected words belong to the same group.
Yes! Visit our Connections Archive to browse and play all previous puzzles. This is a great way to practice and challenge yourself with puzzles you may have missed.
Absolutely! Connections is 100% free to play on ConnectionsSports.com. You can play the daily puzzle, access the archive, and create custom puzzles — all without any subscription or payment.
The colors indicate difficulty: 🟨 Yellow is the easiest, 🟩 Green is moderate, 🟦 Blue is tricky, and 🟪 Purple is the hardest (often involving wordplay or abstract connections). We recommend solving the yellow and green categories first!
A new Connections puzzle is available every day at . Bookmark this page and come back daily to test your puzzle skills with a fresh challenge!