War of the words

WASHINGTON -- In the fourth round of the national spelling bee, Dominic Ranz Errazo finally got a word he could relate to: "emetic," which means inducing one to vomit.

"It sounds like the nervousness I get up here," said the seventh-grader from Goose Creek, S.C.

Dominic spelled it correctly and became one of 51 contestants -- from a field of 273 -- to survive for a second day of competition today.

Also returning will be eighth-grader Jack Ausick of Park County, Mont., who aced "fretum," an arm of the sea, in the fourth round after mastering "potpourri," perfumed flower petals, in the third.

Other contestants were not so sharp. Just 71 of the original 273 made it through the third round -- and 20 of them were eliminated in the fourth.

Fifth-grader Ronnie Cowsert of Port Saint Lucie, Fla., looked a little heartsick after he misspelled the word for liver disease -- "cirrhosis" -- in the second round.

Sixth-grader Marlee Labroo of Quincy, Ill., gave the spelling bee judge a sad smile when he corrected her stab at "hartebeest," a type of antelope.

The champion at the 78th annual Scripps National Spelling Bee will be crowned today.

Beaming seventh-grader Matthew Giese of Mason, Ohio, made it to the third round by spelling "kakemono," a picture painted on silk, suitable for hanging. Then he dispensed of "patriliny," tracing descent through the father's line, to make it through the fourth round.

Victoria Stanley of Summitville, Ind., expressed the feeling of many when she heard her word -- "sciamachy," meaning futile combat.

"Excuse me?" the fourth-grader said, drawing laughter from the audience. After the official repeated it, she spelled it wrong and was eliminated in the second round.

Just about everybody but Megan Courtney of Windsor, Mo., laughed at the mere sound of the word she drew, then again when they heard its definition. It was "trichotillomania," the abnormal desire to pull one's hair out.

Courtney misspelled it, but she got an extra long round of applause from the several hundred friends and family members of contestants who made up the audience in a downtown hotel.

The competitors included 146 boys and 127 girls, ages 9 to 14, who were being tested from a list of 950 specially chosen words.

Each speller wins at least $50. The first-place winner gets $28,000 in cash, scholarships and bonds, plus books from Encyclopedia Britannica. That's about $10,000 more than in previous years.

The contest is administered by E.W. Scripps Co. The youngsters all won local contests sponsored by newspapers.

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On the Net:

Scripps National Spelling Bee: http://www.spellingbee.com/