A seventh-grader from Corona was eliminated in the eighth round of the Scripps National Spelling Bee Wednesday to be among nine spellers tying for 12th.
Avijeet S. Randhawa misspelled pridian, an adjective meaning of or relating to a previous day or to Tuesday, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary. He spelled it predian.
The 11 spellers who correctly spelled their eighth-round word correctly advanced to Thursday’s finals.
The original field of 231 spellers from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Canada, the Bahamas, Germany and Ghana was reduced to 121 at the start of Wednesday’s quarterfinals. There were 59 spellers eliminated in the first round, 32 in the second and 19 in the third.
The 12-year-old began Wednesday’s competition at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland, by correctly spelling chumble, a verb meaning to gnaw or chew, to be among 73 spellers to advance to the fifth round. There were 48 spellers eliminated.
In the second round of each segment the spellers answer a multiple-choice word meaning question. Avijeet’s question was “A gourmand is someone who enjoys:” and he correctly selected “a fine dining experience,” to be among the 56 spellers to advance to the semifinals, while 17 spellers were eliminated.
The Auburndale Intermediate School student correctly spelled constatation, a noun meaning basic assumption, in the sixth round to be among 22 spellers advancing to the seventh round, while 34 were eliminated.
Avijeet correctly answered his seventh-round word meaning question, “If something is described as Jovian, it relates to:” selecting Jupiter, to be among 20 advancing to the eighth round.
In Tuesday’s first round, Avijeet correctly spelled cacaxte, a square wooden packing frame or crate that has four legs and a net cover and is carried on the back, especially by Guatemalan Indians with the help of a tumpline, according to the Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary, the bee’s official dictionary.
Avijeet then correctly answered his multiple-choice word meaning question: “An osteopath is a type of:” selecting medical practitioner.
In the third round, he correctly spelled transitory, an adjective meaning of brief duration.
With the bee limited to students in eighth grade or below, Avijeet will be eligible for the 2024 national bee.
Avijeet’s sister Aisha competed in the national bee from 2016-19, tying for seventh in 2018. His sister Lara was among 10 spellers tying for 13th in 2022 and reached the quarterfinals in 2021.
A speller from Riverside County has never won the bee.