The rare daily word game sweeping the globe. Find what's hidden in plain sight.
AUTOMATON
Definition of AUTOMATON
noun
A machine or robot designed to follow a precise sequence of instructions.
Wiktionary · CC BY-SA
Where it comes from
From Ancient Greek αὐτόματον (autómaton), neuter of αὐτόματος (autómatos, “self moving, self willed”). Doublet of automat.
Etymology via Wiktionary (CC BY-SA).
Word DNA
Line of descent
- Ancient Greek
- English
One recorded step before English.
Deepest traced root
3rd
of 59 source languages in OUTLIER
12.4%
of traced words share this origin (10,104)
branch · 12.4% of traced words
How it is built
Same root, AUTOMATON · 2 relatives in the game
OUTLIER scores every word on how unusual it is, and that number is not published. Working it out at the board is the game.
AUTOMATON in OUTLIER
Players have found it on 2 boards so far.
It first turned up on Day 148, 15 October 2026. The most recent board was Day 152, 19 October 2026. Nobody has seen it on a board for 12 days.
First ever to find it
on Day 148, 15 October 2026 - before anyone else in Outlier's history. See the Pioneers
Built from these letters
AUTOMATON starts with A and ends with N. Sorted, its letters read AAMNOOTTU - the shape to hunt for when the grid is scrambled. A, T and O appear more than once.
Words that start AUTOMA
Its neighbours in the OUTLIER dictionary - shortest first.
Could you have found AUTOMATON?
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 148 - and most players walked straight past it.
Play today's OUTLIER