Paimagam advances to Scripps semi-finals

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — Charlotte native Akshra Paimagam was among the 49 contestants left standing at the Scripps National Spelling Bee as the first day of competition closed. During two oral spelling rounds Wednesday, 234 contestants were eliminated, leaving only a...

Stellar spellers get stumped by written test

WASHINGTON — E-T-Y-M-O-L-O-G-Y. It’s fitting that the lead word for the stage portion of the 88th annual Scripps National Spelling Bee is defined by Merriam-Webster as the explanation of where a word came from. It’s also what top spellers from around the country...