The rare daily word game sweeping the globe. Find what's hidden in plain sight.
OSTRACON
Definition of OSTRACON
noun
A piece of pottery or stone, usually broken off from a vase or other earthenware vessel, especially one used to cast a vote during the Ancient Greek process of ostracism.
Wiktionary · CC BY-SA
Where it comes from
Borrowed from Ancient Greek ὄστρακον (óstrakon).
Etymology via Wiktionary (CC BY-SA).
Word DNA
Line of descent
- Ancient Greek
- English
One recorded step before English.
Deepest traced root
2nd
of 59 source languages in OUTLIER
12.6%
of traced words share this origin (3,789)
branch · 12.6% of traced words
How it is built
OUTLIER scores every word on how unusual it is, and that number is not published. Working it out at the board is the game.
OSTRACON in OUTLIER
Players have found it on 12 boards so far.
It first turned up on Day 34, 23 June 2026. The most recent board was Day 144, 11 October 2026. Nobody has seen it on a board for 8 days.
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
OSTRACON starts with O and ends with N. Sorted, its letters read ACNOORST - the shape to hunt for when the grid is scrambled. O appears more than once.
Same letters, different word
2 other words use exactly these letters. Worth knowing at the board: an anagram fits a grid the same way.
Words that start OSTRAC
Its neighbours in the OUTLIER dictionary - shortest first.
Also seen on Day 34
Could you have found OSTRACON?
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