The rare daily word game sweeping the globe. Find what's hidden in plain sight.

TONK

4 letters

Definition of TONK

noun

An illegal immigrant of any country.

Wiktionary · CC BY-SA

Where it comes from

Origins are unknown, but definitely predate the use of metal flashlights, contrary to the most quoted description of origin. It is probable that the origin relates to Chinese immigration, as the first law to restrict immigration from a particular country was enacted in 1882 to limit the numbers of Chinese coming to the United States. It is said that many of the illegal immigrants made their way to the US via the Gulf of Tonkin area of what is now Vietnam. It is also possible that the term is related to the Chinese "tong" mob.

Etymology via Wiktionary (CC BY-SA).

Rarity score
Withheld
Revealed only in play
Tier
Withheld
Find it yourself

OUTLIER scores every word on how unusual it is, and that number is not published. Working it out at the board is the game.

TONK in OUTLIER

Players have found it on 10 boards so far. 13 players have found it across Outlier's history.

Day 1Day 120
Its 10 boards, across 120 finished boards · taller bars are busier boards
10
Boards found on
60
First board
117
Latest board
24
Longest gap, days

It first turned up on Day 60, 19 July 2026. The most recent board was Day 117, 14 September 2026. Nobody has seen it on a board for 3 days.

First ever to find it

sixwinston

on Day 60, 19 July 2026 - before anyone else in Outlier's history. See the Pioneers

Built from these letters

TONK
4
Letters
1
Vowels
3
Consonants
4
Different letters
2
Longest consonant run
1
Longest vowel run

TONK starts with T and ends with K. Sorted, its letters read KNOT - the shape to hunt for when the grid is scrambled. No letter is used twice, which makes it an isogram.

Same letters, different word

One other word uses exactly these letters. Worth knowing at the board: an anagram fits a grid the same way.

Words that start TONK

Its neighbours in the OUTLIER dictionary - shortest first.

Could you have found TONK?

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 60 - and most players walked straight past it.

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