The rare daily word game sweeping the globe. Find what's hidden in plain sight.
CATACOMB
Definition of CATACOMB
noun
An underground system of tunnels and chambers with recesses for graves, used (in former times) as a cemetery; a tunnel system used for burying the dead, as in Paris or Ancient Rome.
Wiktionary · CC BY-SA
Where it comes from
From Middle English catacombe, from Old English catacumbe, catacumbas pl, from Late Latin catacumbae pl, name of the underground cemetery of St. Sebastian in Rome, of unclear origin. Perhaps a dissimilation (influenced by *cumbō (“to lie, recline”)) of Late Latin cata tumbās (literally “among the tombs”) (from Ancient Greek κατά (katá, “under”) and τύμβος (túmbos, “tomb”)). Some sources suggest Ancient Greek κύμβη (kúmbē, “drinking vessel”) as an alternative etymon, but the semantic link is unclear.
Etymology via Wiktionary (CC BY-SA).
Word DNA
Line of descent
4 recorded generations before English.
Deepest traced root
3rd
of 59 source languages in OUTLIER
12.3%
of traced words share this origin (10,543)
branch · 12.3% 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.
CATACOMB in OUTLIER
Players have found it on 1 board so far. 12 players have found it across Outlier's history.
It first turned up on Day 137, 4 October 2026. Nobody has seen it on a board for 35 days.
First ever to find it
on Day 137, 4 October 2026 - before anyone else in Outlier's history. See the Pioneers
Built from these letters
CATACOMB starts with C and ends with B. Sorted, its letters read AABCCMOT - the shape to hunt for when the grid is scrambled. C and A appear more than once.
Words that start CATACO
Its neighbours in the OUTLIER dictionary - shortest first.
Could you have found CATACOMB?
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 137 - and most players walked straight past it.
Play today's OUTLIER