The rare daily word game sweeping the globe. Find what's hidden in plain sight.
PRANK
Definition of PRANK
noun
A practical joke or mischievous trick.
Wiktionary · CC BY-SA
Where it comes from
Origin uncertain. Perhaps from Middle English pranken (“to adorn, arrange one's attire”), probably from Middle Dutch pronken, proncken (“to flaunt, make a show, arrange one's attire”), related to German prangen (“to make a show, be resplendent”), Dutch prangen (“to squeeze, press”), Danish pragt (“pomp, splendor”), all from Proto-Germanic *pranganą, *prangijaną, *prag- (“to press, squeeze, thring”), from Proto-Indo-European *brengʰ- (“to press, squeeze”). Or, perhaps ultimately related to Proto-Germanic *brahtaz, similar to Dutch pracht (“splendor”), Swedish prakt (“glory, pomp”) (loaned from Low German). Cognate with Middle Low German prunken (“to flaunt”), German prunken (“to flaunt”), Danish prunke (“to make a show, prank”). Sense of "mischievous act" from earlier verbal sense of "to be crafty or subtle, set in order, adjust". See also prink, prance, prong.
Etymology via Wiktionary (CC BY-SA).
Word DNA
Line of descent
6 recorded generations before English.
Deepest traced root
24th
of 59 source languages in OUTLIER
0.4%
of traced words share this origin (116)
branch · 22.3% of traced words
How it is built
Same root, PRANK · 3 relatives in the game
Its etymology also names Middle Low German.
OUTLIER scores every word on how unusual it is, and that number is not published. Working it out at the board is the game.
PRANK in OUTLIER
Players have found it on 13 boards so far. 21 players have found it across Outlier's history.
It first turned up on Day 22, 11 June 2026. The most recent board was Day 151, 18 October 2026. Nobody has seen it on a board for 2 days.
First found by a player on Day 22, 11 June 2026.
Built from these letters
PRANK starts with P and ends with K. Sorted, its letters read AKNPR - the shape to hunt for when the grid is scrambled. No letter is used twice, which makes it an isogram.
Words that start PRANK
Its neighbours in the OUTLIER dictionary - shortest first.
Also seen on Day 22
Could you have found PRANK?
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 22 - and most players walked straight past it.
Play today's OUTLIER