The rare daily word game sweeping the globe. Find what's hidden in plain sight.
MARATHON
Definition of MARATHON
noun
A 42.195-kilometre (26-mile-385-yard) road race.
Wiktionary · CC BY-SA
Where it comes from
From French marathon, coined in 1894 by linguist Michel Bréal for the first modern time Olympic Games after Ancient Greek Μαραθών (Marathṓn), a town northeast of Athens. Phidippides the Greek ran the distance from Marathon to Athens to deliver a message regarding the Battle of Marathon. The modern sport of marathon running is based on a run approximately the same distance. The toponym itself comes from μάραθον (márathon, “fennel”) and refers to the prevalence of the plant in the area.
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.
MARATHON in OUTLIER
Players have found it on 12 boards so far. 12 players have found it across Outlier's history.
It first turned up on Day 32, 21 June 2026. The most recent board was Day 116, 13 September 2026. Nobody has seen it on a board for 5 days.
First ever to find it
on Day 32, 21 June 2026 - before anyone else in Outlier's history. See the Pioneers
Built from these letters
MARATHON starts with M and ends with N. Sorted, its letters read AAHMNORT - the shape to hunt for when the grid is scrambled. A appears more than once.
Words that start MARATH
Its neighbours in the OUTLIER dictionary - shortest first.
Also seen on Day 32
Could you have found MARATHON?
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 32 - and most players walked straight past it.
Play today's OUTLIER