The Bee Blog

Abhijay is out

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - 22:31

Abhijay Kodali, Speller 484 and a Texas fifth grader, is out. He went pretty far for someone who didn't expect to be there at all. “I didn't expect to be” in the finals, Abhijay said. “It'...

Jashun is out

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - 22:24

Jashun Paluru, Speller 192 and an Indiana eighth grader is out -- leaving three Texans on stage. Jashun finished in 10th place in 2016 and tied for 16th place last year. “I just hope to win, a...

There are four spellers left

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - 22:20

And three of them are from Dallas, Texas. Speller 471, Karthik Nemmani, is here through the RSVBee program; the other three came through traditional means. ...

Navneeth is out

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - 22:07

Navneeth Murali, Speller 279 and a New Jersey sixth grader, was eliminated on "gelinotte," a European woodland grouse related to the American ruffed grouse. A slew of spellers followed him to the edge...

Sravanth is out

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - 21:49

Sravanth Malla, Speller 315 and a New York eighth grader, was mobbed by the other spellers after he misspelled "cento," an often poetic patchwork composition of parts from other works. They sw...

Paul is out

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - 21:46

Paul Hamrick, Speller 72 and a California eighth grader, is out. He tied for 35th place last year. His word was "fourrier," meaning one that goes before : forerunner, precursor. Paul was ex...

Aisha is out

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - 21:36

Aisha Randhawa, Speller 50, and a California seventh grader, is out on "perduellion," meaning treason, subversion. Aisha tied for 22nd place in 2016 and 35th place last year. Her parents sa...

The biggest laugh line of the Bee

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - 21:24

Was the sentence for "pseudepigrapha," meaning spurious words purporting to originate from biblical characters. The sentence: Jasmine realized the speaker was spouting pseudepigrapha as soon as he qu...

Erin is out

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - 21:14

Erin Howard, Speller 98 and an Alabama seventh grader, is out on "funest," meaning portending death or evil : fatal, dire, doleful. Dr. Bailly read, "As the speller saw the funest movement of ...

Rohan is out

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - 21:08

Rohan Raja, Speller 460 and a Texas sixth grader, is in his first Bee. He misspelled "loratadine," a long-acting, nonsedating antihistamine drug taken orally to relieve symptoms of seasonal aller...

Phoebe is out

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - 21:03

Phoebe Smith, Speller 326 and a Pennsylvania seventh grader misspelled "cabalassou," a large armadillo measuring about three feet exclusive of the tail. She tied for 189th place last year. ...

Shruthika is out

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - 20:56

Shruthika Padhy, Speller 290 and a New Jersey seventh grader, is out on "paillasson," coarsely woven natural or synthetic straw used for hats. Shruthika tied for 22nd place in 2016 and se...

Tara is out

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - 20:48

Tara Singh, Speller 133 and a Kentucky eighth grader, is in the last of her five Scripps National Spelling Bees. She tied for 43rd place in 2013, 50th place in 2015, 22nd place in 2016 and 18...

Anisha is out

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - 20:43

Anisha Rao, Speller 80, a California seventh grader, misspelled "pavillon" and is out. It's the bell of a wind instrument. Anisha is from the highly competitive San Francisco Bay area, and is ...

Bye, Simone

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - 20:38

Simone Kaplan, Speller 60 and a Florida sixth grader, finished far better than her 189th-place finish in 2017. She misspelled "carmagnole," a street dance in a meandering course to the tune of...

Now, now, now!

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - 14:39

We're live on ESPN! It's Enya Huber's second time at the Scripps National Spelling Bee and she was feeling good. Enya, Speller 15, lives in Ontario, Canada, and when her sponsor dropped the spel...

Primetime Finalists

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - 14:31

"Hello, Dr. Bailly," said Abhijay Kodali, Speller 484 and a Texas fifth grader. He correctly spelled "millefleurs," a perfume made from extracts of several flowers. He was the last spe...

Hello to you

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - 14:28

"Hello again," said Phoebe Smith, Speller 326 and a Pennsylvania seventh grader. She correctly spelled "thymiaterion," meaning a vessel used by the ancient Greeks for burning incense. ...

Marisa is out

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - 14:24

Marisa Langley, Speller 171 and a Florida eighth grader, misspelled "hausen," a white sturgeon of the Black Sea, Caspian Sea, and their tributaries that reaches a length of 18 feet and has roe th...

Hmmm

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - 14:20

"Hmmmmmmm," said Paul Hamrick, Speller 72, audibly. The California eighth grader's word was "orrisroot,"the fragrant rootstock of any of several European plants of the genus “Iris” used in pulveri...