New Delhi, July 4 -- Happy Fourth of July, and if you clicked through hoping for a red, white, and blue-themed grid today, brace for disappointment. The New York Times Connections puzzle for Saturday, July 4, 2026, identified as Game #1119, is not marking the holiday at all. Instead, puzzle editor Wyna Liu has served up a mixed bag of persistence verbs, poetic forms, tropical cocktails, and a sneaky fill-in-the-blank category that trips up even seasoned solvers. If you are trying to protect a long streak before firing up the barbecue, here is everything you need.

yellow is the most accessible, green and blue sit in the middle, and purple is reserved for the sharpest wordplay and misdirection. Players are allowed four incorrect guesses be...