NEAR

Where it comes from

From Middle English nere, ner, from Old English nēar (“nearer”, comparative of nēah (“nigh”), the superlative would become next), influenced by Old Norse nær (“near”), both originating from Proto-Germanic *nēhwiz (“nearer”), comparative of the adverb *nēhw (“near”), from the adjective *nēhwaz, ultimately from Pre-Proto-Germanic *h₂nḗḱwos, a lengthened-grade adjective derived from Proto-Indo-European *h₂neḱ- (“to reach”). Cognate with North Frisian nai, noi, näi (“close, near”), Saterland Frisian nai (“close, near”), Dutch na (“close”), naar (“to, towards”), Dutch Low Saxon nao (“after”), German nach (“after”), nahe (“near”), näher (“nearer”), German Low German nao, nå (“towards”), Luxembourgish no (“after”), Danish, Faroese, Icelandic, Norwegian Bokmål, and Norwegian Nynorsk nær (“close, near”), Swedish när, nära (“close, near”), Gothic 𐌽𐌴𐍈 (nēƕ, “close, near”). See also nigh. Near appears to be derived from (or at the very least influenced by) the North Germanic languages; as opposed to nigh, which continues the inherited West Germanic adjective. Both, however, are ultimately derived from the same Proto-Germanic root: *nēhw (“near, close”).

Etymology via Wiktionary (CC BY-SA).

NEAR in OUTLIER

It has fitted 42 boards so far.

It first turned up on Day 2, 23 May 2026. The most recent board was Day 107, 4 September 2026. Nobody has seen it on a board for 1 day.

First found by a player on Day 34, 23 June 2026.

Built from these letters

NEAR starts with N and ends with R. Sorted, its letters read AENR - the shape to hunt for when the grid is scrambled. No letter is used twice, which makes it an isogram.

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 NEAR

Its neighbours in the OUTLIER dictionary - shortest first.

Also seen on Day 2