Éclair what? Explaining the word Faizan Zaki spelled to win
Éclair what? Explaining the word Faizan Zaki spelled to win
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Faizan Zaki is the National Spelling Bee champion
Last year's runner up, Faizan Zaki, takes home the 2025 National Spelling Bee championship.
The Scripps National Spelling Bee concluded with an exciting comeback this year, securing last year's second-place winner, Faizan Zaki, as this year's champion and making him one of only five runners-up ever to come back and win the first-place spot.
Zaki bested Sarvadnya Kadam in the 20th round to win the 2025 spelling bee on May 29 with the word éclaircissement, which he spelled without hesitation before collapsing to the floor as confetti fell, as USA TODAY reported.
Last year, Zaki was bested in a "spell-off," which entailed breaking a tie by having two contestants spell as many words accurately as possible in 90 seconds. That time, his 20 came just short of his opponent's 29. This time around, however, he secured the trophy and cash reward with a traditional moment of spelling excellence.
Zaki recognized the world and quickly and spelled it confidently. Some of us in the USA TODAY newsrooms, admittedly, could not do the same. Do you think you could have gotten the winning word? Do you know what it means or how to pronounce it?
Here's what to know.
Who won the Scripps National Spelling Bee?
Faizan Zaki, a 13-year-old Texas native, took home the winning title and $52,500 grand prize at the 2025 Scripps National Spelling Bee, beating out runner-up Sarvadnya Kadam. He came in second place himself in 2024, making this win a special redemption for the teen.
What does éclaircissement mean?
The winning word, éclaircissement, was one Zaki told news outlets he "instantly" recognized. While its prefix may conjure images of the chocolate-drizzled pastries known as éclairs, the term has nothing to do with sweet treats.
The French word, first used in 1667 according to Merriam-Webster, means to clear up or clarify something, or to explain or enlighten.
Using the word in a sentence, you may say something like, "The book provided an éclaircissement on the author's intentions" or "The detective's éclaircissement of the crime was crucial in solving the case."
How do you pronounce éclaircissement?
When it comes to pronunciation, hearing someone do it right tends to be the way to go, so we suggest listening to the video below if you intend to incorporate the winning spelling bee word into your daily vocabulary.
If you're more of a sounding-it-out type of person, the phonetic spelling, according to Cambridge Dictionary, is eklɛʀsismɑ̃.
What are previous winning spelling bee words?
In 2024, a tie-breaker between Zaki and the eventual winner, Bruhat Soma, entailed a lightning round in which Soma won by spelling 29 words correctly in 90 seconds, meaning there wasn't one singular winning word.
In 2023, 14-year-old Dev Shah correctly spelled psammophile, a plant or animal that lives in sandy areas, to become the 2023 champion.
In 2022, 14-year-old Harini Logan won the first-ever spell-off, again securing the title via the correct spelling of multiple words in rapid succession.
In 2021, 14-year-old Zaila Avant-garde spelled murraya, a genus of tropical trees, to win the title.
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Indianapolis Star
44 minutes ago
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Doyel: Jim Irsay loved his daughters, his Colts and his music. And Indianapolis
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Here he is, hoisting that same trophy after receiving it from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. Pictures with Colts chief operating officer and dear friend of decades, Pete Ward — 'We're like Lennon and McCartney,' Irsay would tell Ward, who'd respond: 'More like Lennon and Ringo' — and John Madden, and Jerry Jones, and George Bush at the White House. Did you know Jim Irsay liked to play kickball? Or wear Rudolph's red nose? Or pull up his sleeves and growl as he compared biceps with his daughters? So many pictures, more than any other kind, of Jim with his favorite people on Earth: his three daughters, and his 10 grandchildren Ten people spoke, all of whom have known Jim for decades, with one admitting they'd been considering this eulogy for 20 years because, as most knew, 'He's had some brushes with death.' 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He doesn't say what kind of meeting, then invites the crowd to join him in the 'Serenity Prayer' and calls Irsay 'a calming voice offering hope, comfort and support' at meetings. People gravitated toward him afterward, the speaker told the crowd, and Jim stuck around, giving others 'the courage to keep going.' Jim built some clubs that would hold meetings and renovated others — new carpet, nice chairs, like that — so attendees of these meetings would have a place 'where they were could feel like home.' Jim Irsay was an addict, as he talked about freely. Were there occasional headlines? Yes. It happens. The disease is cruel, and it does not discriminate. The Eastern Star Church choir is here to sing two songs, and its first selection is the 1929 hymn 'I'll Fly Away.' It starts like this: Some glad morning when this night is o'er I will fly away I will be free one day Jim Irsay is free now. Just yesterday morning they let us know you were gone… That's the third song on the pre-service playlist, that 1970 piece by James Taylor about life and death, addiction and fame. The crowd that files into the sanctuary walks past pictures of Irsay and his girls, Irsay and his grandkids, Irsay and his dog, a Maltese-Shih Tzu mix named Drake. The casket is near the pastor's pulpit, the lid a strong Colts blue, surrounded by nearly a dozen guitars and more pictures of Irsay and his family and a wreath of flowers shaped into a horseshoe. Another song: 'I am the Walrus' by The Beatles (1967). Another: 'What's Going On" by Marvin Gaye (1971). Another: 'Tired of Being Alone' by Al Green (1971). The songs are telling the story of Jim Irsay, a romantic and an optimist and a dreamer. And a realist who'd tell people, 'It's lonely at the top.' Soon John Mellencamp is playing, but not over the loudspeakers. He's right up there — next to the casket, in front of Irsay's prized drum set once played by The Beatles — having entered the sanctuary through a side door. Irsay was 24 when they met, shortly after the Colts came here from Baltimore in early 1984. Mellencamp was 32, and Irsay called him his 'big brother.' 'He was a dreamer,' Mellencamp says before he plays his first song. 'We all need to be dreamers. And he did that so well.' Mellencamp says he wrote the song he's about to play first, 'Longest Days,' for his mom. 'She lived to be 100,' he says. 'Wish I could say the same for Jimmy.' Then he's playing 'Pink Houses,' and if you're getting chills as you read those words, you're not the only one. All over St. Luke's, people in mourning are tapping their feet. Leather shoes, wing tips, high heels — they're keeping the beat. Irsay would've liked that. And this was a moment that Irsay, who talked about death quite a bit, had discussed with Mellencamp. 'He asked for this song to be played,' Mellencamp says. Doyel in 2014: Discovering Jim Irsay's private side — a heart of gold Doyel in 2022: Scars of Irsay family's mental health issues run deep. They share to heal, help. There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under the heavens: A time to be born and a time to die… Those are the first three lines from Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, a scripture the family asked Dungy to read. As the nearly two-hour service unfolded, speakers kept describing the misunderstood essence of Jim Irsay in bursts of one or two sentences. No need to identify the speakers; this wasn't a news conference. This was further illumination of this city's biggest champion: 'A proud student of the school of life.' 'I'm going to miss his innocent and loving eccentricities.' 'He loved the Colts, he loved the state, and boy did he love people.' 'He was wonderfully, perfectly imperfect.' 'He'd speak to a homeless person in New York like he'd speak to one of his fellow (NFL) owners.' 'He believed in God, he believed in angels who were looking after him, and he believed that one day those angels would lead him into the arms of God.' 'I wish I could've seen it last week when he met his beloved John Lennon: 'What's up, brother!'' 'If you wanted to get on his bad side, talk down to somebody in the (Colts) building. He hated that.' 'Twas in another lifetime, one of toil and blood When blackness was a virtue and the road was full of mud Those are the first two lines of 'Shelter in the Storm,' a 1975 song by Bob Dylan, another of Irsay's beloveds. The crowd is treated to audio of Irsay introducing that song at a club in Nashville, before he sings it in a passable rendition — better than that; the man had real talent — of Dylan himself. 'Three, two, one,' Irsay says, warming up before getting started on his introduction. 'Sometimes we can be trapped in this wilderness we call the world here…' Irsay continues in that gravelly smoker's voice of his, and while there is no video, you can hear him speaking around a smile. Then he is singing, and this is the end of the service. Jim Irsay is having the last word at the Jim Irsay funeral, and guests are holding candles as several of Irsay's grandchildren walk from row to row, lighting each candle at the edge of the row, the fire being passed from mourner to mourner until there are 1,000 or more flickering lights while Irsay sings to mourners in what the ceremony program calls a 'message from Jim in heaven.' He was a fascinating man, Jim Irsay, an intellectual who studied the lives of Teddy Roosevelt and George Halas, JFK and MLK. He was the Colts' No. 1 fan, celebrating with family the team's home victories — every one of them, for years — with takeout from Hollyhock Hill restaurant on the northside. He was a girl dad, writing the song 'Lily White' about the joy of watching his babies sleep. A grainy home video of Irsay singing that song played Monday at St. Luke's, with Irsay strumming his guitar and singing over audible conversations all over the room. Someone behind camera keeps giggling as he describes his girls, these future owners of the Indianapolis Colts, in hues of white and pink. He was a romantic, Jim Irsay. A man of music, a man of dreams. 'As we all go on,' Mellencamp had said before walking out the way he came in, 'think of Jimmy from time to time and what he did for this community. And let's hope his dreams come true.' Find IndyStar columnist Gregg Doyel on Threads, or on BlueSky and Twitter at @GreggDoyelStar, or at Subscribe to the free weekly Doyel on Demand newsletter.
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
This classic '80s song just hit 1 billion streams on Spotify.
This classic '80s song just hit 1 billion streams on Spotify. Show Caption Hide Caption Watch Rick Astley's reaction to the 'Ted Lasso' funeral scene Ahead of his slot on New Kids on the Block's The Mixtape tour, singer Rick Astley plays '80s trivia with USA TODAY's Melissa Ruggieri. Entertain This!, USA TODAY No, Mr. Astley, this isn't a fake-out. You're streaming royalty now. British pop star Rick Astley, whose inescapable '80s hit "Never Gonna Give You Up" found an unexpected renaissance in the digital age, has joined the ranks of Spotify's "Billions Club," according to a June 2 press release. The soulful synth-pop track, taken from Astley's 1987 debut album "Whenever You Need Somebody," has exceeded one billion streams on the music platform. "I never could have imagined back in 1987 that 'Never Gonna Give You Up' would still be going strong decades later," Astley, 59, said in a statement. "Thanks to streaming platforms, a whole new generation has been able to discover music like mine. Reaching one billion streams is something I never dreamed of and to everyone who's ever listened, thank you." Rick Astley memoir: Singer tackles Rickrolling, Dave Grohl and resurgent pop career in 'Never' The song, written and produced by the all-star dance-pop production team Stock Aitken Waterman, peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks and has sold five million copies to date. In the late 2000s, "Never Gonna Give You Up" received an unlikely revival when the "Rickrolling" internet meme became a viral sensation. The digital prank consists of a bait-and-switch maneuver in which someone opens a disguised hyperlink containing the music video to Astley's song. When the individual opens the link and is confused to discover the song, they have been "Rickrolled." Thanks to the "Rickrolling" effect, "Never Gonna Give You Up" earned tens of millions of YouTube views (the music video currently has 1.6 billion), was played at various sporting events and was even referenced on X, formerly known as Twitter, by The White House during the Barack Obama administration. Rick Astley is no one-hit wonder, but these music stars are. "I don't know how my career would have turned out without Rickrolling," Astley reflected in his 2024 memoir "Never." "But it would be stupid to say it hasn't ultimately done me a lot of good." While "Never Gonna Give You Up" remains Astley's signature song, his other hits include "Together Forever," "She Wants to Dance with Me," "Cry for Help" and "It Would Take a Strong Man." His most recent album, 2023's "Are We There Yet?," peaked at No. 2 on the charts in his native U.K. Contributing: Melissa Ruggieri, USA TODAY
