The rare daily word game sweeping the globe. Find what's hidden in plain sight.
VERTEBRA
Definition of VERTEBRA
noun
Any of the bony or cartilaginous segments which make up the backbone, consisting in some lower vertebrates of several distinct elements which never become united, and in higher vertebrates having a short more or less cylindrical body whose ends articulate by pads of elastic or cartilaginous tissue with those of adjacent vertebrae and a bony arch that encloses the spinal cord.
Wiktionary · CC BY-SA
Where it comes from
Borrowing from Latin vertebra (“a joint”), from vertō (“to turn”) + -bra (instrumental nominal suffix). Having multiple vertebrae (plural of vertebra) in one's backbone instead of having a single bone or solid spine, allows for the movement of the body with bends and turns. Hence meaning 1.
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
30.7%
of traced words share this origin (25,613)
branch · 30.7% of traced words
How it is built
Same root, VERTEBRA · 2 relatives in the game
OUTLIER scores every word on how unusual it is, and that number is not published. Working it out at the board is the game.
VERTEBRA in OUTLIER
Players have found it on 1 board so far.
It first turned up on Day 138, 5 October 2026. Nobody has seen it on a board for 30 days.
First ever to find it
on Day 138, 5 October 2026 - before anyone else in Outlier's history. See the Pioneers
Built from these letters
VERTEBRA starts with V and ends with A. Sorted, its letters read ABEERRTV - the shape to hunt for when the grid is scrambled. E and R appear more than once.
Words that start VERTEB
Its neighbours in the OUTLIER dictionary - shortest first.
Could you have found VERTEBRA?
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 138 - and most players walked straight past it.
Play today's OUTLIER