The rare daily word game sweeping the globe. Find what's hidden in plain sight.
ANAPEST
Definition of ANAPEST
noun
A metrical foot of three syllables of the shape | ⏖ – |:
Wiktionary · CC BY-SA
Other senses
ANAPEST carries 4 further meanings.
noun
A metrical foot composed of two unaccented syllables followed by one accented one, as in the word seventeen.
noun
A metrical foot in quantitative verse composed of two short syllables followed by one long one.
noun
In prosody, a foot consisting of three syllables, the first two short or unaccented, the last long or accented: the reverse of the dactyl.
noun
A metrical foot consisting of three syllables, the first two short, or unaccented, the last long, or accented (˘ ˘ -); the reverse of the dactyl. In Latin dĕ-ĭ-tās, and in English in-ter-vene", are examples of anapests.
Where it comes from
From Latin anapaestus, from Ancient Greek ἀνάπαιστος (anápaistos, “struck back, reversed [relative to dactyl]”), from ἀνά (aná, “back”) + παίω (paíō, “to strike”).
Etymology via Wiktionary (CC BY-SA).
Word DNA
Line of descent
- Ancient Greek
- Latin
- English
2 recorded generations before English.
Deepest traced root
2nd
of 59 source languages in OUTLIER
12.6%
of traced words share this origin (3,724)
branch · 12.6% of traced words
How it is built
OUTLIER scores every word on how unusual it is, and that number is not published. Working it out at the board is the game.
ANAPEST in OUTLIER
Players have found it on 44 boards so far. 97 players have found it across Outlier's history.
It first turned up on Day 37, 26 June 2026. The most recent board was Day 149, 16 October 2026. Nobody has seen it on a board for 1 day.
First ever to find it
on Day 37, 26 June 2026 - before anyone else in Outlier's history. See the Pioneers
Built from these letters
ANAPEST starts with A and ends with T. Sorted, its letters read AAENPST - the shape to hunt for when the grid is scrambled. A appears more than once.
Words that mean much the same
Near-synonyms of ANAPEST. Not interchangeable at the board - the grid decides that - but close in meaning.
Same letters, different word
One other word uses exactly these letters. Worth knowing at the board: an anagram fits a grid the same way.
Words that start ANAPES
Its neighbours in the OUTLIER dictionary - shortest first.
Also seen on Day 37
Could you have found ANAPEST?
OUTLIER is a daily word game. One grid, the same grid for everybody, and the words nobody else spots are the ones that pay. This word was on Day 37 - and most players walked straight past it.
Play today's OUTLIER