NEW YORK — The New York Times Connections puzzle No. 1,075 for Thursday, May 21, 2026, challenged players with 16 words grouped into four categories featuring kinds of pies, slang associated with butts, tennis scoring terms and varieties of mustard.

The 16 words in today's grid were: LOVE, CHESS, HONEY, MOON, PEACH, HOT, YELLOW, PUMPKIN, ADVANTAGE, CAN, PECAN, COLONEL, DEUCE, SHOOFLY, CABOOSE and FORTY.

The yellow category, typically the easiest, was "Kinds of pies": CHESS, PECAN, PUMPKIN, SHOOFLY.

The green category was "Things associated with butts": CABOOSE, CAN, MOON, PEACH.

The blue category was "Tennis scoring terms": ADVANTAGE, DEUCE, FORTY, LOVE.

The purple category, often the most difficult, was "___ Mustard": COLONEL, HONEY, HOT, YELLOW.

Connections, created by Josh Wardle and acquired by The New York Times, presents 16 words daily that must be sorted into four groups of four sharing a common theme. Players receive feedback with colored tiles: yellow for the easiest group, progressing to green, blue and purple for increasing difficulty.

The puzzle resets at midnight........

© International Business Times