On Fourth Try, 14-year-old Wins National Spelling Bee

On Fourth Try, 14-year-old Wins National Spelling Bee

A 14-year-old student from San Antonio, Texas, has won the Scripps National Spelling Bee on her fourth attempt.

Harini Logan's victory came late Thursday in the first-ever spell-off tiebreaker of the competition. Logan spelled 21 words correctly during the 90-second spell-off. That was six more than her opponent, 12-year-old Vikram Raju of Aurora¹, Colorado.

The judges said the winning word was "moorhen," which means a female, red grouse² bird.

Logan's victory came after it appeared that she had answered a question incorrectly during the vocabulary round of the spelling bee. But she was soon reinstated.

She defined the word "pullulation" as the nesting of mating birds. But the judges said the correct answer was the swarming³ of bees.

"My heart stopped for a second," Harini said.

A few minutes later, head judge Mary Brooks⁴ said the judges studied the word and her answer. They decided⁵ to change their decision: "The answer you gave to that word is considered correct, so we are going to reinstate you."

Grace Walters has trained Logan in spelling for some time. She said, "Harini has been to hell and back with her spelling bee experiences,"

Harini said she was afraid when the spell-off was introduced last year, saying, "I go slow. That's my thing. I didn't know how I would fare in that setting."

Over the past few months, Harini prepared for the possibility of a spell-off. And on Thursday, Harini won the $50,000 in prizes. She is the first-ever spelling bee champion to have been reinstated during the competition.

The Scripps National Spelling Bee takes place in Washington, D.C.. It has been held since 1925.

Vikram Raju came in second. He said: "I just had to be a little faster." He hopes to return next year.

The spelling bee returned to in-person competition this year after being held mostly online last year.

"In the end, it's all been worth it," Walters said. "This is the ending Harini deserves."

Words in This Story

tiebreaker — n. an extra period of play or an extra question that is used to decide the winner in a game when the score is tied or even

reinstate –v. to put someone back into the position or job that they had before

to hell and back –expression to go through and return from a very difficult experience

fare –v. to do something well or badly (often used in questions)

prepare –v. to make yourself ready for something that you will be doing On Fourth Try, 14-year-old Wins National Spelling Bee

1 aurora   

n.极光

参考例句：

• The aurora is one of nature's most awesome spectacles.极光是自然界最可畏的奇观之一。
• Over the polar regions we should see aurora.在极地高空,我们会看到极光。

2 grouse   

n.松鸡；v.牢骚，诉苦

参考例句：

• They're shooting grouse up on the moors.他们在荒野射猎松鸡。
• If you don't agree with me,please forget my grouse.如果你的看法不同，请不必介意我的牢骚之言。

3 swarming   

密集( swarm的现在分词 )； 云集； 成群地移动； 蜜蜂或其他飞行昆虫成群地飞来飞去

参考例句：

• The sacks of rice were swarming with bugs. 一袋袋的米里长满了虫子。
• The beach is swarming with bathers. 海滩满是海水浴的人。

4 brooks   

n.小溪( brook的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Brooks gave the business when Haas caught him with his watch. 哈斯抓到偷他的手表的布鲁克斯时，狠狠地揍了他一顿。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Ade and Brooks exchanged blows yesterday and they were severely punished today. 艾德和布鲁克斯昨天打起来了，今天他们受到严厉的惩罚。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。