You can't blame Dario Javier, speller 272, for giggling at his word: "wafflestomper."
The Nevada sixth grader cracked up when he heard it. A wafflestomper is a hiking boot with a thick rubber sole with ridges patterned to increase traction.
Luckily, he got it right.
So did Melodie Loya, speller 274, who was excited to hear her word was "woebegoneness."
"Oh, woebegoneness. Thank you!" she said.
No one has ever been so excited for the word, which means the quality or state of being dismal or sorrowful.
Melodie, a New York eighth grader, tied for 25th place last year and 18th place in 2017.
