Recherché.
According to Merriam-Webster, this word means exquisite or choice. It can also mean, exotic, rare, pretentious or overblown.
However, to Armstrong Middle School sixth grader Soyeon Park, spelling it correctly meant that she won the Oktibbeha County Spelling Bee for the second time, and would go on to the State Spelling Bee to be held in Jacksonon March 14.
Last year, she won at the regional level and ended up competing in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington D.C.
The county spelling bee was held in the Greensboro Center on Monday morning.
Soyeon said she puts a lot into preparing for the competition but does not study on a set schedule.
“I don’t time myself,” she said. “I never feel ready, but I practice a lot.”
The spelling Bee included students from fourth to eighth grade from all schools in the county, who had won at their school level.
“This encompasses any schools in the county that want to participate,” said Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District Professional Development Coordinator Theresa Pitts, who has led the spelling bee since the mid 1990s. “We have Starkville Academy, Armstrong, West Elementary, Henderson Ward Stewart and Overstreet."
Henderson Ward Stewart Technology Specialist Rob Brown served as pronouncer for the spelling bee, giving competitors their words and when asked, using the word in a sentence and offering part of speech and language of origin.
He said this year’s words, including “sanctum sanctorum” and “Dantean,” were among the most difficult he had seen at the spelling bee.
“Today we didn’t get through the 325 words that I had prepared for,” Brown said. “We only got through 70-something words today, but you have to be prepared, just in case … the words this year were so tough.”
In addition to Soyeon, Ryan Nichols Neal took second place and Julia Schloemer took third.
“I’m just always amazed at these young children, and how they can spell words that are difficult to even pronounce,” Pitts said. “These are phenomenal children.”