{{use American English|date=August 2019}} {{Use mdy dates|date=November 2014}} {{short description|US spelling competition winners}}
[[File:President George W. Bush and Mrs. Laura Bush are joined outside the Oval Office by the 2006 National Spelling Bee Champion, Kerry Close.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Kerry Close, the winner of the 2006 Bee, meeting President George W. Bush and his wife Laura at the White House after her victory|alt=George W. Bush and his wife Laura meeting Spelling Bee champion Kerry Close]] The Scripps National Spelling Bee (formerly the Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee and commonly called the National Spelling Bee) is an annual spelling bee held in the United States. The competition began in 1925,<ref name=bbc>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-48470222|title=Spelling Bee: Record eight children win Scripps National in the US|work=BBC News|date=May 31, 2019|access-date=July 11, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190608002516/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-48470222|archive-date=June 8, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> and was initially organized by ''The Courier-Journal'' of Louisville, Kentucky, until the Scripps Howard Broadcasting Company (now the E. W. Scripps Company) assumed sponsorship in 1941. Every speller in the competition has previously participated in a local spelling bee, usually organized by a local newspaper.<ref name="about">{{cite web |url=http://www.spellingbee.com/history |title=History |access-date=May 23, 2009 |publisher=Scripps National Spelling Bee |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090531073322/http://www.spellingbee.com/history |archive-date=May 31, 2009 |url-status=live }}</ref>
The first champion was Frank Neuhauser of Louisville, who beat eight other finalists to win the inaugural competition.<ref name=nytimes>{{cite web |first=Margalit |last=Fox |title=Rudy Bateman, a Speller's Speller, Dies at 97 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/23/us/23Bateman.html?_r=1 |work=The New York Times |date=March 22, 2011 |access-date=2011-04-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190102213028/https://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/23/us/23neuhauser.html?_r=1 |archive-date=January 2, 2019 |url-status=live }}</ref> He was honored with a parade in his hometown, where and when he was presented with bouquets of gladioli in commemoration of the winning word "gladiolus", and returned to the Bee a number of times as a guest of honor.<ref name=nytimes /> The first girl to win was Pauline Bell, also of Louisville, the following year. Girls won nine consecutive competitions from 1932 to 1940. Joint winners have been crowned on seven occasions in the Bee's history. The first such occurrence was in 1950, when Colquitt Dean and Diana Reynard were declared co-champions after the contestants had exhausted the list of available words.<ref name="gnarled">{{cite news |title=Gnarled with a "K" |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,812600,00.html |magazine=Time |date=June 5, 1950 |access-date=March 6, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080602153111/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,812600,00.html |archive-date=June 2, 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In both 1957 and 1962 joint champions were declared when both remaining contestants spelled the same word incorrectly.<ref name="fifty-seven">{{cite news |title=O-R-D-E-A-L in Washington |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,867739,00.html |magazine=Time |date=June 17, 1957 |access-date=March 6, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080602153146/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,867739,00.html |archive-date=June 2, 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="era">{{cite web|date=June 7, 1962|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=266&dat=19620607&id=nucrAAAAIBAJ&pg=5365,2847183&hl=en|title=Spelling Bee Is Called Draw|work=Kentucky New Era|access-date=July 11, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190722012017/https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=266&dat=19620607&id=nucrAAAAIBAJ&sjid=QWcFAAAAIBAJ&pg=5365,2847183&hl=en|archive-date=July 22, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> After three consecutive ties between 2014 and 2016, a written tiebreaker round was introduced, but it was discontinued for the 2019 Bee,<ref name="nuckbee1">{{Cite web|url=https://www.columbian.com/news/2019/may/01/national-spelling-bee-ditches-its-tiebreaker/|author=Nuckols, Ben|title=National Spelling Bee ditches its tiebreaker|date=May 1, 2019|website=The Columbian|agency=Associated Press|language=en|access-date=May 2, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190502083838/https://www.columbian.com/news/2019/may/01/national-spelling-bee-ditches-its-tiebreaker/|archive-date=May 2, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> which subsequently resulted in an unprecedented eight-way tie when the organizers ended the final session after the remaining contestants had completed five consecutive perfect rounds.<ref name="atlantic">{{cite web|last=Zimmer|first=Ben|date=May 31, 2019|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2019/05/scripps-spelling-bee-wasnt-ready-octochamps/590749/|title=How Eight Middle Schoolers Toppled the Scripps Spelling Bee|work=The Atlantic|access-date=July 21, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190611070948/https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2019/05/scripps-spelling-bee-wasnt-ready-octochamps/590749/|archive-date=June 11, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>
Although the competition is titled "National", it is not restricted to spellers from the United States. In 1998, Jody-Anne Maxwell from Jamaica became the first speller from outside the US to win the Bee,<ref name=chiaro>{{cite news |first=Randal |last=Archibold |title=Placed in the Shadows By a Chiaroscurist |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9406E1DE1138F93AA15756C0A96E958260 |work=The New York Times |date=May 29, 1998 |access-date=March 6, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080602183530/http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9406E1DE1138F93AA15756C0A96E958260 |archive-date=June 2, 2008 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Jamaican Girl Crowned National Spelling Champ |url=http://www.cnn.com/US/9805/28/spelling.bee/ |publisher=CNN |date=May 28, 1998 |access-date=March 7, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080213031141/http://www.cnn.com/US/9805/28/spelling.bee/ |archive-date=February 13, 2008 |url-status=dead |df=mdy }}</ref> as well as the first black winner.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qwUDRnr2e-AC&pg=PA144|title=Spelling Her Way to Success|work=Ebony|date=May 1998|publisher=Johnson Publishing Company|access-date=July 11, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190723180054/https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=qwUDRnr2e-AC&pg=PA144&lpg=PA144|archive-date=July 23, 2019}}</ref> In recent decades the competition has been dominated by Indian-American students.<ref name=CNN /> Although people of South Asian origin make up less than one percent of the U.S. population,<ref name=CNN>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/29/us/spelling-bee-south-asians/index.html|first=Moni|last=Basu|access-date=July 11, 2019|title=Why South Asians win spelling bees: P-R-A-C-T-I-C-E|date=May 29, 2015|work=CNN|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190603034000/https://www.cnn.com/2015/05/29/us/spelling-bee-south-asians/index.html|archive-date=June 3, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> the vast majority of the winners since 1999, including all fourteen champions between 2008–2018 and seven of the eight co-champions in 2019, have come from the South Asian community.<ref name=bbc /><ref name=CNN /> One such speller, Nihar Janga from Austin, Texas, became the youngest champion in the Bee's history when he won the title in 2016 at the age of 11.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/national-spelling-bee-winners-nihar-janga-jaimar-hathwar-a7052876.html|title=National Spelling Bee crowns youngest champion in history|work=The Independent|first=Feliks|last=Garcia|date=May 27, 2016|access-date=July 11, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190711202111/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/national-spelling-bee-winners-nihar-janga-jaimar-hathwar-a7052876.html|archive-date=July 11, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> The 93rd Scripps National Spelling Bee was the first time that an African-American (Zaila Avant-garde) became the champion and only the second time that the champion was a black person.
The competition was not held from 1943 to 1945 because of World War II. The 2020 competition was canceled due to concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic.<ref>{{cite news | author1 = Alicia Lee | title = National Spelling Bee canceled for the first time since WWII | url = https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/21/us/scripps-national-spelling-bee-canceled-trnd/index.html | work = CNN | date = 2020-04-21 | access-date = 2020-05-16 }}</ref>
On May 29, 2025, returning entrant Faizan Zaki of Allen, Texas, who was first runner-up in 2024, won the 2025 Scripps National Spelling Bee title and trophy over 242 other contestants, including runner-up Sarvadnya Kadam of Visalia, California. This year marked the 100th year anniversary of the spelling competition which began on June 17, 1925. Forty-two former National Spelling Bee winners returned to attend the centennial celebration, the earliest two from 1960 (Henry Feldman) and 1961 (John Capehart) to then-current reigning champion Bruhat Soma (2024). Next year the 2026 Scripps National Spelling Bee finals will be held in Washington, D.C. at the DAR Constitution Hall.
==Champions== [[File:The Secretary to the President, Everett Sanders congratulates Betty Robinson of South Bend, Indiana, on winning the fourth annual National Spelling Bee in Washington. The spelling bee LCCN2016888806.jpg|thumb|right|upright|The Secretary to the President, Everett Sanders congratulating Betty Robinson, the winner of the 1928 Bee|alt=Everett Sanders shaking hands with Spelling Bee champion Betty Robinson]] [[File:Barack Obama greets Kavya Shivashankar the 2009 Scripps Spelling Bee winner.jpg|thumb|right|upright|Kavya Shivashankar, the 2009 winner, meeting President Barack Obama. Also pictured is her younger sister Vanya Shivashankar, who would go on to be co-champion in 2015.|alt=Barack Obama meeting Spelling Bee champion Kavya Shivashankar and her family]] [[File:ScrippsBee2011-Sukanya.jpg|thumb|right|upright|Sukanya Roy, the winner of the 2011 competition|alt=Spelling Bee champion Sukanya Roy]]
{| class="wikitable" |style="background-color:#FBCEB1; width:3em"|{{dagger}} |Joint champions |- |}
{| class="wikitable sortable" border=" 1px #aaa solid" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; border-collapse: collapse" |- !scope=col| Edition !scope=col| Year !scope=col| Competition-ending word<ref name=bee>{{cite web |url=http://spellingbee.com/about-the-bee |title=About the Bee |access-date=July 11, 2019 |publisher=Scripps National Spelling Bee |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190603051240/https://spellingbee.com/about-the-bee |archive-date=June 3, 2019 |url-status=dead }}</ref> !scope=col| Winner<ref name=bee /> !scope=col| Sponsor<ref name=bee /> !scope=col| Sponsor's location<ref name=bee /> |- !scope=row| 1st | 1925 | gladiolus | {{sort|Neuhauser|Frank Neuhauser}} | ''The Courier-Journal'' | Louisville, Kentucky |- !scope=row| 2nd | 1926 | cerise | {{sort|Bell|Pauline Bell}} | ''The Courier-Journal'' | Louisville, Kentucky |- !scope=row| 3rd | 1927 | abrogate | {{sort|Lucas|Dean Lucas}} | ''Akron Beacon Journal'' | Akron, Ohio |- !scope=row| 4th | 1928 | knack | {{sort|Robinson|Betty Robinson}} | ''South Bend News-Times'' | South Bend, Indiana |- !scope=row| 5th | 1929 | luxuriance<br> | {{sort|Hogan|Virginia Hogan}} | ''Omaha World-Herald'' | Omaha, Nebraska |- !scope=row| 6th | 1930 | albumen | {{sort|Jensen|Helen Jensen}} | ''The Des Moines Register and Tribune'' | Des Moines, Iowa |- !scope=row| 7th | 1931 | foulard | {{sort|Randall|Ward Randall}} | ''White Hall Register-Republican'' | White Hall, Illinois |- !scope=row| 8th | 1932 | invulnerable | {{sort|Greenwalk|Dorothy Greenwald}} | ''The Des Moines Register and Tribune'' | Des Moines, Iowa |- !scope=row| 9th | 1933 | torsion | {{sort|Roach|Alma Roach}} | ''Akron Beacon Journal'' | Akron, Ohio |- !scope=row| 10th | 1934 | brethren | {{sort|Wilson|Sarah Wilson}} | ''Portland Evening Express'' | Portland, Maine |- !scope=row| 11th | 1935 | intelligible | {{sort|Mohler|Clara Mohler}} | ''Akron Beacon Journal'' | Akron, Ohio |- !scope=row| 12th | 1936 | eczema | {{sort|Trowbridge|Jean Trowbridge}} | ''The Des Moines Register and Tribune'' | Des Moines, Iowa |- !scope=row| 13th | 1937 | promiscuous | {{sort|Beckley|Waneeta Rose Beckley}} | ''The Courier-Journal'' | Louisville, Kentucky |- !scope=row| 14th | 1938 | sanitarium | {{sort|Richardson|Marian Richardson}} | ''The Louisville Times'' | Louisville, Kentucky |- !scope=row| 15th | 1939 | canonical | {{sort|Rice|Elizabeth Ann Rice}} | ''Telegram & Gazette'' | Worcester, Massachusetts |- !scope=row| 16th | 1940 | therapy | {{sort|Kuykendall|Laurel Kuykendall}} | ''The Knoxville News-Sentinel'' | Knoxville, Tennessee |- !scope=row| 17th | 1941 | initials | {{sort|Sissman|Louis Edward Sissman}} | ''The Detroit News'' | Detroit, Michigan |- !scope=row| 18th | 1942 | sacrilegious | {{sort|Earnhart|Richard Earnhart}} | ''El Paso Herald-Post'' | El Paso, Texas |- !scope=row| 19th | 1946 | semaphore | {{sort|McKinney|John McKinney}} | ''The Des Moines Register and Tribune'' | Des Moines, Iowa |- !scope=row| 20th | 1947 | chlorophyll | {{sort|Pollard|Mattie Lou Pollard}} | ''Atlanta Journal'' | Atlanta, Georgia |- !scope=row| 21st | 1948 | psychiatry | {{sort|Chappelear|Jean Chappelear}} | ''Akron Beacon Journal'' | Akron, Ohio |- !scope=row| 22nd | 1949 | onerous | {{sort|Calvin|Kim Calvin}} | ''Canton Repository'' | Canton, Ohio |- !scope=row rowspan="2"| 23rd | rowspan="2"| 1950 | rowspan="2"|meticulosity |style="background-color:#FBCEB1| {{sort|Reynard|Diana Reynard}}{{dagger}} | ''Cleveland Press'' | Cleveland, Ohio |- |style="background-color:#FBCEB1| {{sort|Dean|Colquitt Dean}}{{Dagger}} | ''Atlanta Journal'' | Atlanta, Georgia |- !scope=row| 24th | 1951 | insouciant | {{sort|Belz|Irving Belz}} | ''Memphis Press Scimitar'' | Memphis, Tennessee |- !scope=row| 25th | 1952 | vignette | {{sort|Hall|Doris Ann Hall}} | ''Winston-Salem Journal'' | Winston-Salem, North Carolina |- !scope=row| 26th | 1953 | soubrette | {{sort|Hess|Elizabeth Hess}} | ''Arizona Republic'' | Phoenix, Arizona |- !scope=row| 27th | 1954 | transept | {{sort|Cashore|William Cashore}} | ''Norristown Times Herald'' | Norristown, Pennsylvania |- !scope=row| 28th | 1955 | crustaceology | {{sort|Sloss|Sandra Sloss}} | ''St. Louis Globe-Democrat'' | St. Louis, Missouri |- !scope=row| 29th | 1956 | condominium | {{sort|Sachko|Melody Sachko}} | ''Pittsburgh Press'' | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |- !scope=row rowspan="2"| 30th | rowspan="2"| 1957 | rowspan="2"| schappe |style="background-color:#FBCEB1| {{sort|Bennett|Dana Bennett}}{{Dagger}} | ''Rocky Mountain News'' | Denver, Colorado |- |style="background-color:#FBCEB1| {{sort|Owen|Sandra Owen}}{{dagger}} | ''Canton Repository'' | Canton, Ohio |- !scope=row| 31st | 1958 | syllepsis | {{sort|Schlehuber|Jolitta Schlehuber}} | ''Topeka Daily Capital'' | Topeka, Kansas |- !scope=row| 32nd | 1959 | catamaran | {{sort|Montgomery|Joel Montgomery}} | ''Rocky Mountain News'' | Denver, Colorado |- !scope=row| 33rd | 1960 | eudaemonic | {{sort|Feldman|Henry Feldman}} | ''The Knoxville News-Sentinel'' | Knoxville, Tennessee |- !scope=row| 34th | 1961 | smaragdine | {{sort|Capehart|John Capehart}} | ''Tulsa Tribune'' | Tulsa, Oklahoma |- !scope=row rowspan="2"|35th | rowspan="2"|1962 | rowspan="2"|esquamulose |style="background-color:#FBCEB1| {{sort|Crawford|Nettie Crawford}}{{Dagger}} | ''El Paso Herald-Post'' | El Paso, Texas |- |style="background-color:#FBCEB1| {{sort|Day|Michael Day}}{{Dagger}} |''St. Louis Globe-Democrat'' |St. Louis, Missouri |- !scope=row| 36th | 1963 | equipage | {{sort|Slyke|Glen Van Slyke III}} | ''The Knoxville News-Sentinel'' | Knoxville, Tennessee |- !scope=row| 37th | 1964 | sycophant | {{sort|Kerek|William Kerek}} | ''Akron Beacon Journal'' | Akron, Ohio |- !scope=row| 38th | 1965 | eczema | {{sort|Kerpan|Michael Kerpan Jr.}} | ''Tulsa Tribune'' | Tulsa, Oklahoma |- !scope=row| 39th | 1966 | ratoon | {{sort|Wake|Robert A. Wake}} | ''Houston Chronicle'' | Houston, Texas |- !scope=row| 40th | 1967 | chihuahua | {{sort|Reinke|Jennifer Reinke}} | ''The Omaha World-Herald'' | Omaha, Nebraska |- !scope=row| 41st | 1968 | abalone | {{sort|Walters|Robert L. Walters}} | ''The Topeka Daily Capital'' | Topeka, Kansas |- !scope=row| 42nd | 1969 | interlocutory | {{sort|Yoachum|Susan Yoachum}} | ''Dallas Morning News'' | Dallas, Texas |- !scope=row| 43rd | 1970 | croissant | {{sort|Childress|Libby Childress}} | ''Winston-Salem Journal & Sentinel'' | Winston-Salem, North Carolina |- !scope=row| 44th | 1971 | shalloon | {{sort|Knisely|Jonathan Knisely}} | ''Philadelphia Bulletin'' | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |- !scope=row| 45th | 1972 | macerate | {{sort|Kral|Robin Kral}} | ''Lubbock Avalanche-Journal'' | Lubbock, Texas |- !scope=row| 46th | 1973 | vouchsafe | {{sort|Trinkle|Barrie Trinkle}} | ''Fort Worth Press'' | Fort Worth, Texas |- !scope=row| 47th | 1974 | hydrophyte | {{sort|Junkin|Julie Ann Junkin}} | ''Birmingham Post-Herald'' | Birmingham, Alabama |- !scope=row| 48th | 1975 | incisor | {{sort|Tosteson|Hugh Tosteson García}} | ''San Juan Star'' | San Juan, Puerto Rico |- !scope=row| 49th | 1976 | narcolepsy | {{sort|Kneale|Tim Kneale}} | ''Syracuse Herald-Journal'' | Syracuse, New York |- !scope=row| 50th | 1977 | cambist | {{sort|Paola|John Paola}} | ''The Pittsburgh Press'' | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |- !scope=row| 51st | 1978 | deification | {{sort|McCarthy|Peg McCarthy}} | ''The Topeka Capital-Journal'' | Topeka, Kansas |- !scope=row| 52nd | 1979 | maculature | {{sort|Kerwin|Katie Kerwin}} | ''Rocky Mountain News'' | Denver, Colorado |- !scope=row| 53rd | 1980 | elucubrate | {{sort|Bailly|Jacques Bailly}} | ''Rocky Mountain News'' | Denver, Colorado |- !scope=row| 54th | 1981 | sarcophagus | {{sort|Pipkin|Paige Pipkin}} | ''El Paso Herald-Post'' | El Paso, Texas |- !scope=row| 55th | 1982 | psoriasis | {{sort|Dieveney|Molly Dieveney}} | ''Rocky Mountain News'' | Denver, Colorado |- !scope=row| 56th | 1983 | Purim | {{sort|Giddens|Blake Giddens}} | ''El Paso Herald-Post'' | El Paso, Texas |- !scope=row| 57th | 1984 | luge | {{sort|Greenblatt|Daniel Greenblatt}} | ''Loudoun Times-Mirror'' | Leesburg, Virginia |- !scope=row| 58th | 1985 | milieu | {{sort|Natarajan|Balu Natarajan}} | ''Chicago Tribune'' | Chicago, Illinois |- !scope=row| 59th | 1986 | odontalgia | {{sort|Pennington|Jon Pennington}} | ''The Patriot News'' | Harrisburg, Pennsylvania |- !scope=row| 60th | 1987 | staphylococci | {{sort|Petit|Stephanie Petit}} | ''The Pittsburgh Press'' | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |- !scope=row| 61st | 1988 | elegiacal | {{sort|Ramachandran| Rageshree Ramachandran}} | ''The Sacramento Bee'' | Sacramento, California |- !scope=row| 62nd | 1989 | spoliator | {{sort|Isaacs|Scott Isaacs}} | ''Rocky Mountain News'' | Denver, Colorado |- !scope=row| 63rd | 1990 | fibranne | {{sort|Dimak|Amy Marie Dimak}} | ''The Seattle Times'' | Seattle, Washington |- !scope=row| 64th | 1991 | antipyretic | {{sort|Lagatta|Joanne Marie Lagatta}} | ''Wisconsin State Journal'' | Clintonville, Wisconsin |- !scope=row| 65th | 1992 | lyceum | {{sort|Goad|Amanda Goad}} | ''The Richmond News Leader'' | Richmond, Virginia |- !scope=row| 66th | 1993 | kamikaze | {{sort|Hooper|Geoff Hooper}} | ''The Commercial Appeal'' | Memphis, Tennessee |- !scope=row| 67th | 1994 | antediluvian | {{sort|Andrews|Ned G. Andrews}} | ''The Knoxville News-Sentinel'' | Knoxville, Tennessee |- !scope=row| 68th | 1995 | xanthosis | {{sort|Carroll|Justin Tyler Carroll}} | ''The Commercial Appeal'' | Memphis, Tennessee |- !scope=row| 69th | 1996 | vivisepulture | {{sort|Guey|Wendy Guey}} | ''The Palm Beach Post'' | West Palm Beach, Florida |- !scope=row| 70th | 1997 | euonym | {{sort|Sealfon|Rebecca Sealfon}} | ''New York Daily News'' | New York City |- !scope=row| 71st | 1998 | chiaroscurist | {{sort|Maxwell|Jody-Anne Maxwell}} | Phillips & Phillips Stationery Suppliers | Kingston, Jamaica |- !scope=row| 72nd | 1999 | logorrhea | {{sort|Lala|Nupur Lala}} | ''The Tampa Tribune'' | Tampa, Florida |- !scope=row| 73rd | 2000 | demarche | {{sort|Thampy|George Thampy}} | ''St. Louis Post-Dispatch'' | St. Louis, Missouri |- !scope=row| 74th | 2001 | succedaneum | Sean Conley | ''Aitkin Independent Age'' | Aitken, Minnesota |- !scope=row| 75th | 2002 | prospicience | {{sort|Buddiga|Pratyush Buddiga}} | ''Rocky Mountain News'' | Denver, Colorado |- !scope=row| 76th | 2003 | pococurante | {{sort|Gunturi|Sai Gunturi}} | ''Dallas Morning News'' | Dallas, Texas |- !scope=row| 77th | 2004 | autochthonous | {{sort|Tidmarsh|David Tidmarsh}} | ''South Bend Tribune'' | South Bend, Indiana |- !scope=row| 78th | 2005 | appoggiatura | {{sort|Kashyap|Anurag Kashyap}} |''San Diego Union-Tribune'' |San Diego, California |- !scope=row| 79th | 2006 | Ursprache | {{sort|Close|Kerry Close}} | ''Asbury Park Press/Home News Tribune'' | Spring Lake, New Jersey |- !scope=row| 80th | 2007 | serrefine | {{sort|O'Dorney|Evan O'Dorney}} | ''Contra Costa Times'' | Walnut Creek, California |- !scope=row| 81st | 2008 | guerdon | {{sort|Mishra|Sameer Mishra}} | ''Journal & Courier'' | West Lafayette, Indiana |- !scope=row| 82nd | 2009 | Laodicean | {{sort|Shivashankar|Kavya Shivashankar}} | ''The Olathe News'' | Olathe, Kansas |- !scope=row| 83rd | 2010 | stromuhr | {{sort|Veeramani|Anamika Veeramani}} | ''The Plain Dealer'' | Cleveland, Ohio |- !scope=row| 84th | 2011 | cymotrichous | {{sort|Roy|Sukanya Roy}} | ''Times Leader'' | Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania |- !scope=row| 85th | 2012 | guetapens | {{sort|Nandipati|Snigdha Nandipati}} | ''U-T San Diego'' | San Diego, California |- !scope=row| 86th | 2013 | knaidel | {{sort|Mahankali|Arvind Mahankali}} | ''New York Daily News'' | New York City |- !scope=row rowspan="2"|87th | rowspan="2"|2014 | stichomythia |style="background-color:#FBCEB1| {{sort|Hathwar|Sriram J. Hathwar}}{{Dagger}} | Corning Rotary Club | Corning, New York |- | feuilleton | style="background-color:#FBCEB1|{{sort|Sujoe|Ansun Sujoe}}{{dagger}} | Texas Christian University | Fort Worth, Texas |- !scope=row rowspan="2"|88th | rowspan="2"|2015 |scherenschnitte |style="background-color:#FBCEB1|{{sort|Shivashankar|Vanya Shivashankar}}{{Dagger}} |''The Olathe News'' |Olathe, Kansas |- |nunatak |style="background-color:#FBCEB1|{{sort|Venkatachalam|Gokul Venkatachalam}}{{Dagger}} |''St. Louis Post-Dispatch'' |St. Louis, Missouri |- !scope=row rowspan="2"|89th | rowspan="2"|2016 |Feldenkrais |style="background-color:#FBCEB1|{{sort|Hathwar|Jairam Hathwar}}{{Dagger}} | Corning Rotary Club |Corning, New York |- |gesellschaft |style="background-color:#FBCEB1|{{sort|Janga|Nihar Saireddy Janga}}{{Dagger}} |Houston Public Media |Austin, Texas |- !scope=row| 90th | 2017 | marocain | {{sort|Vinay|Ananya Vinay}} | ''The Fresno Bee'' | Fresno, California |- !scope=row| 91st | 2018 | koinonia | Karthik Nemmani | Scoggins Middle School | McKinney, Texas |- !scope=row rowspan="8"|92nd | rowspan="8"|2019 | auslaut | style="background-color:#FBCEB1|{{sort|Gandhasri|Rishik Gandhasri}}{{dagger}} | Bay Area Regional Spelling Bee | San Jose, California |- | erysipelas | style="background-color:#FBCEB1|{{sort|Howard|Erin Howard}}{{dagger}} | Adventure Travel | Huntsville, Alabama |- |bougainvillea |style="background-color:#FBCEB1|{{sort|Sundar|Saketh Sundar}}{{dagger}} | Howard County Library | Clarksville, Maryland |- |aiguillette |style="background-color:#FBCEB1|{{sort|Padhy|Shruthika Padhy}}{{dagger}} | Rosa International Middle School | Cherry Hill, New Jersey |- |pendeloque |style="background-color:#FBCEB1|{{sort|Sukhatankar|Sohum Sukhatankar}}{{dagger}} | Dallas Sports Commission | Dallas, Texas |- |palama |style="background-color:#FBCEB1|{{sort|Kodali|Abhijay Kodali}}{{dagger}} | Dallas Sports Commission | Flower Mound, Texas |- |cernuous |style="background-color:#FBCEB1|{{sort|Serrao|Christopher Serrao}}{{dagger}} | Discover Lehigh Valley | Whitehouse Station, New Jersey |- |odylic |style="background-color:#FBCEB1|{{sort|Raja|Rohan Raja}}{{dagger}} | Dallas Sports Commission | Irving, Texas |- !scope=row| 93rd | 2021 | murraya | {{sort|Avant-garde|Zaila Avant-garde}} | New Orleans Chapter of the Links | New Orleans, Louisiana |- !scope=row| 94th | 2022 | moorhen{{efn|name=fn1}} | Harini Logan | The Brauntex Performing Arts Theatre Association | San Antonio, Texas |- !scope=row| 95th | 2023 | psammophile | Dev Shah | SNSB Region One Bee | Largo, Florida |- !scope=row| 96th | 2024 | abseil{{efn|name=fn1}} | Bruhat Soma | Rays Baseball Foundation and Rowdies Soccer Fund | St. Petersburg, Florida |- !scope=row| 97th | 2025 | éclaircissement | Faizan Zaki | Dallas Sports Commission | Allen, Texas |- !scope=row| 98th | 2026 | bromocriptine{{efn|name=fn1}}<ref>{{cite news |author1=Gabe Hauari |author2=Michelle Del Rey |title=Bro what? This word earned Shrey Parikh the Spelling Bee crown |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/2026/05/29/spelling-bee-winning-word-bromocriptine-shrey-parikh/90310261007/ |newspaper=USA Today |date=May 29, 2026 |access-date=May 30, 2026}}</ref> | Shrey Parikh | San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools | Rancho Cucamonga, California |}
== Notes == {{notelist|refs= {{efn|name=fn1|Word spelled during the 90-second spell-off tiebreaker.}} }}
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== * [http://www.spellingbee.com/ spellingbee.com], the official website of the Scripps National Spelling Bee
{{Scripps National Spelling Bee|collapse}}
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Scripps National Scripps National * Scripps National