Spelling bee whiz kids must now take vocabulary tests Kennyi Aouad, 11, of Terre Haute, Ind., bursts into laughter when asked to spell the word “sardoodledom” in Round 3 of the 2007 Scripps ...

Can you master the vocabulary section of the Scripps National Spelling Bee preliminary test? Vocabulary accounts for 50 percent of a speller’s total score on the test, which determines who goes ...

Participants in this year's Scripps National Spelling Bee will be quizzed on vocabulary. ... Md., the spellers in Round One will face the traditional 24-word written spelling test with a twist: ...

Vocabulary will count for 50%25 of a speller%27s overall score; A %22significant change%22 in the Bee%27s 86-year history; The 2013 Scripps National Spelling Bee takes place May 28 to 30 in Oxon ...

Jae Canetti said he screamed "No!" when he learned the National Spelling Bee would be introducing a vocabulary test. He started changing the way he prepared, studying definitions of words on the ...

National Spelling Bee kicks off with a new twist — vocabulary tests May 28, 2013 Anne-Marie Mitroi Sprenger, 13, of Provo, Utah fidgets at the Scripps National Spelling Bee semifinals in 2011.

FATSIS: Well, the bee's director said that the vocabulary testing will help deepen the bee's commitment to not just spelling but meanings, correct usage. In short, it'll make the bee more educational.

Scripps National Spelling Bee contestants can be eliminated from the competition without ever spelling a word wrong due to the vocabulary questions that were introduced two years ago.