Many people were spellbound as they watched the newest Scripps National Spelling Bee champions — Gokul Venkatachalam and Vanya Shivashankar — correctly sound out scherenschnitte and nunatak in order ...

Johnny in Topeka can’t read, but Janne in Helsinki is effortlessly finishing his storybooks. Such a disparity may be expected by now, but the reason might come as a surprise: It probably has much less ...

Faizan Zaki, age 13, spelled the word “eclaircissement” and collapsed on the floor in victory as confetti showered him at the 100th Scripps National Spelling Bee last week. The annual competition took ...

Learning a language is often tricky, particularly when it comes to spelling new words. "The Spell As You Pronounce Universal Project" (SAYPU) wants everyone to spell words the way they are pronounced ...

Washington University in St. Louis provides funding as a member of The Conversation US. Children who compete in spelling bees often dazzle with their ability to spell complex words. In this year’s ...

If you're a kid learning how to write, or an adult speaker of a language with sensible spelling, English spelling can seem like a cruel prank. And even if you're a completely literate adult native ...

We take for granted that English is filled with weird spellings — 'b's that are silent, 'gh' and 'ph' that sounds like 'f,' 'i's and 'e's that switch inexplicably, and more — making it complicated for ...