The rare daily word game sweeping the globe. Find what's hidden in plain sight.
MANTICORE
Definition of MANTICORE
noun
A beast with the body of a lion (usually red), the tail of a scorpion, and the head/face of a man with a mouth filled with multiple rows of sharp teeth (like a shark), said to be able to shoot spikes from its tail or mane to paralyse prey. It may be horned, winged, or both; its voice is described as a mixture of pipes and trumpets.
Wiktionary · CC BY-SA
Where it comes from
From Latin mantichōras, from Ancient Greek μαρτιχόρας (martikhóras, “man-eater; tiger”), from Old Persian *martyahvārah (“man-eater”), from 𐎶𐎼𐎫𐎡𐎹 (m-r-t-i-y /martyaʰ/, “man”).
Etymology via Wiktionary (CC BY-SA).
Word DNA
Line of descent
- Persian
- Ancient Greek
- Latin
- English
3 recorded generations before English.
Deepest traced root
19th
of 58 source languages in OUTLIER
0.5%
of traced words share this origin (156)
branch · 0.5% of traced words
How it is built
Same root, MANTICORE · 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.
MANTICORE in OUTLIER
Players have found it on 47 boards so far. 103 players have found it across Outlier's history.
It first turned up on Day 34, 23 June 2026. The most recent board was Day 143, 10 October 2026. Nobody has seen it on a board for 1 day.
First ever to find it
on Day 34, 23 June 2026 - before anyone else in Outlier's history. See the Pioneers
Built from these letters
MANTICORE starts with M and ends with E. Sorted, its letters read ACEIMNORT - the shape to hunt for when the grid is scrambled. No letter is used twice, which makes it an isogram.
Same letters, different word
One other word uses exactly these letters. Worth knowing at the board: an anagram fits a grid the same way.
Words that start MANTIC
Its neighbours in the OUTLIER dictionary - shortest first.
Also seen on Day 34
Could you have found MANTICORE?
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 34 - and most players walked straight past it.
Play today's OUTLIER