The rare daily word game sweeping the globe. Find what's hidden in plain sight.
DACTYL
Definition of DACTYL
noun
A metrical foot of three syllables of the shape | – ⏖ |:
Wiktionary · CC BY-SA
Where it comes from
Learned borrowing from Latin dactylus, from Ancient Greek δάκτυλος (dáktulos, “finger”), from the three bones of the finger corresponding to three syllables. Doublet of dactylus, date, and (possibly) digit.
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 (3,706)
branch · 12.6% of traced words
How it is built
Same root, DACTYL · 1 relative 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.
DACTYL in OUTLIER
Players have found it on 69 boards so far. 502 players have found it across Outlier's history.
It first turned up on Day 19, 8 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 19, 8 June 2026 - before anyone else in Outlier's history. See the Pioneers
Built from these letters
DACTYL starts with D and ends with L. Sorted, its letters read ACDLTY - the shape to hunt for when the grid is scrambled. No letter is used twice, which makes it an isogram.
Words that start DACTYL
Its neighbours in the OUTLIER dictionary - shortest first.
Also seen on Day 19
Could you have found DACTYL?
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 19 - and most players walked straight past it.
Play today's OUTLIER