Scripps National Spelling Bee, Contest | featured news

It'll take more than spelling to win this year's National Spelling Bee. The youngsters will have to know some definitions as well. For the first time, vocabulary will be a part of the Scripps National Spelling Bee when the competition is held next month near the nation's capital.

It's what makes the spelling bee such gripping drama. Five competitors were left, and it appeared none of them would ever miss again. They correctly rolled off 21 words in a row. Hard ones, like "abhinaya" and "capoeira" and "cheongsam" and "opodeldoc." One of the spellers kept checking another one's watch. It was past bedtime, and long past the time slot that had been allotted by ESPN.