Ananya Vinay, a 12-year-old from Fresno, California, won the 2017 Scripps National Spelling Bee on Thursday night, taking advantage of a misstep by runner-up Rohan Rajeev, 14, to correctly spell "marocain" — a type of dress fabric of ribbed crepe, usually made of silk or wool.
Vinay will take home $40,000 in cash and prizes, along with bragging rights. You can read Jeva Lange's history of the Scripps spelling bees at The Week, and why she loves them even though she's a lousy speller.
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