The rare daily word game sweeping the globe. Find what's hidden in plain sight.
DISMAL
Definition of DISMAL
adjective
Disastrous, calamitous.
Wiktionary · CC BY-SA
Where it comes from
From Middle English dismal, dismale, from Anglo-Norman dismal, from Old French (li) dis mals (“(the) bad days”), from Medieval Latin diēs malī (“bad days”).
Etymology via Wiktionary (CC BY-SA).
OUTLIER scores every word on how unusual it is, and that number is not published. Working it out at the board is the game.
DISMAL in OUTLIER
Players have found it on 19 boards so far. 29 players have found it across Outlier's history.
It first turned up on Day 12, 1 June 2026. The most recent board was Day 101, 29 August 2026. Nobody has seen it on a board for 1 day.
First ever to find it
on Day 12, 1 June 2026 - before anyone else in Outlier's history. See the Pioneers
Built from these letters
DISMAL starts with D and ends with L. Sorted, its letters read ADILMS - the shape to hunt for when the grid is scrambled. No letter is used twice, which makes it an isogram.
Words that start DISMAL
Its neighbours in the OUTLIER dictionary - shortest first.
Also seen on Day 12
Could you have found DISMAL?
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 12 - and most players walked straight past it.
Play today's OUTLIER