Some People Really Do Like to Spell
Lots of people have been plagued by the vagaries of English spelling. But for spelling buffs, that is precisely what they find attractive about the language.
This week, these unusual folks had a chance to immerse themselves in their favorite activity via the popular Scripps National Spelling Bee contest. And the winner? Fourteen year-old Anamika Veeramani from Ohio who won by spelling the word "stromuhr" correctly. Wondering what that set of letters might mean?
Well, it refers to a term for an instrument used to measure the velocity of blood flow.
If you would like to delve a bit more into this arena--and expand your vocabulary at the same time, here are the words that got the ten semi-finalists within reach of the top.
scrannel -- a term fo thin or harsh (probably of Norwegian origin)
matsutake --a type of mushroom
rhabdomyoma - a benign tumor of striated muscle.
brumalia -- an ancient Roman solstice festival honoring Dionysus, generally held on guess what--the 25th of December.
leguleian-- lawyerlike
villicus --a slave who served as the superintendence of a large estate. The word eventually got to describe a person to whom the management of any business was entrusted
bacalao -- a phantom island depicted on several early 16th century maps and nautical charts.
mirin -- a condiment used in Japanese cuisine, consisting of 40%–50% sugar
genethliac--referring to nativities; calculated by astrologers; showing position of stars at one's birth.
Bundestag--the parliament of German, established with Germany's constitution of 1949
Now, the next problem is to figure out how to remember this new information. But that is for another day.
