It’s a great day in Olathe, Kansas. Eighth grader Kavya Shivashankar, 13, was crowned the winner of the 82nd annual Scripps National Spelling Bee for correctly spelling the word Laodicean.
Laodicean? Yup. It means lukewarm or indifferent, particularly in matters of politics or religion.
I didn’t know the meaning of the word, or how to spell it. I do now.
Shivashankar won $40,000 in cash along with a host of prizes.
When the teen was interviewed she exclaimed, “This has been my dream for so long; I’ve always wanted to win the bee. I was just really excited when I was able to go up and the spell the last word.”
I wonder if she would have been stumped if the final word was floccinaucinihilipilification? (meaning: the action or habit of estimating something as worthless) My limited IQ would have gotten me eliminated on this one.
How about supercalifragilisticexpialidocious? Hmmm.... I can’t spell it but I can certainly sing it beautifully. That counts for something, doesn’t it?
Congratulations Kavya. May this be the beginning of a very successful spelling career.
Laodicean? Yup. It means lukewarm or indifferent, particularly in matters of politics or religion.
I didn’t know the meaning of the word, or how to spell it. I do now.
Shivashankar won $40,000 in cash along with a host of prizes.
When the teen was interviewed she exclaimed, “This has been my dream for so long; I’ve always wanted to win the bee. I was just really excited when I was able to go up and the spell the last word.”
I wonder if she would have been stumped if the final word was floccinaucinihilipilification? (meaning: the action or habit of estimating something as worthless) My limited IQ would have gotten me eliminated on this one.
How about supercalifragilisticexpialidocious? Hmmm.... I can’t spell it but I can certainly sing it beautifully. That counts for something, doesn’t it?
Congratulations Kavya. May this be the beginning of a very successful spelling career.
Comments