The rare daily word game sweeping the globe. Find what's hidden in plain sight.
KOTO
Definition of KOTO
noun
A Japanese stringed instrument having numerous strings, usually seven or thirteen, that are stretched over a convex wooden sounding board and are plucked with three plectra, worn on the thumb, index finger, and middle finger of one hand.
Wiktionary · CC BY-SA
Where it comes from
From Japanese 箏 (koto).
Etymology via Wiktionary (CC BY-SA).
Word DNA
Line of descent
- Japanese
- English
One recorded step before English.
Deepest traced root
25th
of 59 source languages in OUTLIER
0.4%
of traced words share this origin (319)
branch · 0.4% of traced words
How it is built
Same root, KOTO · 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.
KOTO in OUTLIER
Players have found it on 10 boards so far. 11 players have found it across Outlier's history.
It first turned up on Day 54, 13 July 2026. The most recent board was Day 164, 31 October 2026. Nobody has seen it on a board for 1 day.
First found by a player on Day 54, 13 July 2026.
Built from these letters
KOTO starts with K and ends with O. Sorted, its letters read KOOT - the shape to hunt for when the grid is scrambled. O appears more than once.
Same letters, different word
3 other words use exactly these letters. Worth knowing at the board: an anagram fits a grid the same way.
Words that start KOTO
Its neighbours in the OUTLIER dictionary - shortest first.
Also seen on Day 54
Could you have found KOTO?
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 54 - and most players walked straight past it.
Play today's OUTLIER