The New York Times Connections puzzle returns with another set of 16 seemingly unrelated words, and today's challenge hides a few clever twists. Puzzle #1107 mixes leadership terms, mathematical clues and pronunciation-related words, while the purple category contains one of the more creative wordplay themes in recent days. If you'd rather keep your streak alive without immediately revealing the answers, here are some spoiler-free hints to guide you in the right direction before diving into the solutions.What is NYT Connections?NYT Connections is a daily word game from The New York Times in which players must arrange 16 words into four groups of four that share a common theme. Categories are colour-coded by difficulty, with yellow being the easiest and purple usually containing the trickiest wordplay.NYT Connections hints for todayNeed a gentle nudge? Here are some one-line pointers without giving too much away:Yellow: Think leaders, not followers.Green: Back to primary school maths.Blue: It's all about how words are spoken.Purple: Pow! Bang! Boom! You're getting warmer.Need more help?Still stuck? Here's another layer of clues:Yellow: Words linked to leadership or being first.Green: Signs and terms used in multiplication.Blue: Features that affect pronunciation.Purple: Each answer starts with a familiar sound effect.NYT Connections answers for June 22, 2026Yellow – DominantALPHAHEADLEADPRIMARYGreen – Multiplication indicatorsBYTIMESX●Blue – Pronunciation descriptorsSHORTSILENTSOFTSTRESSEDPurple – Starting with explosive soundsBANGKOKBOOMERPOPSICLEPOWDERWhy today's puzzle was trickyToday's purple category was the biggest curveball. At first glance, Bangkok, Boomer, Popsicle and Powder appear completely unrelated. The connection only becomes apparent when you notice that each word begins with a comic-book-style sound effect: bang, boom, pop and pow.The blue category could also throw players off, as words like "short" and "soft" may seem to belong to grammar or spelling rather than pronunciation. Meanwhile, the green group required thinking about multiplication rather than mathematics in general.Puzzle #1107 offered a balanced challenge, with relatively straightforward yellow and green categories and a particularly clever purple group. If the final category left you scratching your head, you're not alone. Another Connections puzzle arrives tomorrow with four new themes waiting to be uncovered.