The rare daily word game sweeping the globe. Find what's hidden in plain sight.
PRELIMINARY
Definition of PRELIMINARY
adjective
In preparation for the main matter; initial, introductory, preparatory.
Wiktionary · CC BY-SA
Where it comes from
Borrowed from New Latin praelīmināris, formed from prae- (“before”) + līmen (“threshold”) + -āris (adjectival suffix); compare Latin līmināris (“of or belonging to a threshold”). Compare French préliminaire.
Etymology via Wiktionary (CC BY-SA).
Word DNA
Line of descent
- Latin
- English
One recorded step before English.
Deepest traced root
1st
of 59 source languages in OUTLIER
30.6%
of traced words share this origin (24,817)
branch · 30.6% of traced words
How it is built
Its etymology also names French.
OUTLIER scores every word on how unusual it is, and that number is not published. Working it out at the board is the game.
PRELIMINARY in OUTLIER
Players have found it on 1 board so far.
It first turned up on Day 155, 22 October 2026. Nobody has seen it on a board for 7 days.
First found by a player on Day 155, 22 October 2026.
Built from these letters
PRELIMINARY starts with P and ends with Y. Sorted, its letters read AEIILMNPRRY - the shape to hunt for when the grid is scrambled. R and I appear more than once.
Words that start PRELIMI
Its neighbours in the OUTLIER dictionary - shortest first.
Could you have found PRELIMINARY?
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 155 - and most players walked straight past it.
Play today's OUTLIER