Recent championship words from the National Spelling Bee

WASHINGTON – The Scripps National Spelling Bee ended in a tie in 2014 and 2015 after the competitors exhausted all 25 “championship words.” This year’s bee will be different: The final rounds will last longer, and bee organizers will have the discretion to use more difficult words if necessary.

Here are the winning words from recent years of the bee. Do these words look easy to you?

— SCHERENSCHNITTE — The art of cutting paper into decorative designs. Winning word for co-champion Vanya Shivashankar in 2015.

— NUNATAK — A hill or mountain completely surrounded by glacial ice. Winning word for co-champion Gokul Venkatachalam in 2015.

— STICHOMYTHIA — A theatrical term for dialogue representing an altercation and delivered in alternating lines. Winning word for co-champion Sriram Hathwar in 2014.

— FEUILLETON — The features section of a European newspaper or magazine. Winning word for co-champion Ansun Sujoe in 2014.

— KNAIDEL — A type of dumpling eaten especially in Jewish households during Passover. Winning word for Arvind Mahankali in 2013.

— GUETAPENS — An ambush, snare or trap. Winning word for Snigdha Nandipati in 2012.

— CYMOTRICHOUS — Having the hair wavy. Winning word for Sukanya Roy in 2011.

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This story corrects the spelling of “nunatak.”