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USA Today
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Éclair what? Explaining the word Faizan Zaki spelled to win
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.
USA Today
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Éclair what? Explaining the word Faizan Zaki spelled to win
Éclair what? Explaining the word Faizan Zaki spelled to win Show Caption Hide Caption 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.
NDTV
3 days ago
- Health
- NDTV
PETA Demands Renaming World Milk Day To 'Bovine Mammary Secretion Day'
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has written a letter to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), demanding that the United Nations (UN) agency rename World Milk Day, celebrated on June 1, to 'World Bovine Mammary Secretion Day'. The animal rights group said it wanted the agency in charge of the "awareness day" to stop hiding what cow's milk really is and rebrand with a more 'transparent' title. "As World Milk Day aims, in part, to "spread the word about dairy," we'd like to propose a re-brand which would help you do just this by making clear what the white stuff from a cow really is: change the name of the awareness day to World Bovine Mammary Secretion Day," read the letter by PETA's Vice President of Programmed, Elisa Allen. "This rebrand reflects the fact that cows don't make milk because they're cows, but because they are mothers. What you call a "global food" is really a food intended for baby cows and bulls only." PETA argued that the production of milk led to cruelty against the calves, who were separated from their mothers "Cows' secretions aren't meant for humans any more than those of dogs or cockroaches are, but, thanks to human demand for their mothers' mammary secretions, calves are denied nutrients and the maternal bond forged when a mother feeds her infant." The non-profit group said the cows are "repeatedly milked" with as many as 60 per cent of them developing painful udder infection mastitis. "This infection, coupled with the fact that cows on factory farms often live coated with faeces, explains why a litre of milk can have up to 400,000,000 somatic (pus) cells." The group added that the dairy industry released massive amounts of greenhouse gases, which led to environmental degradation. This is not the first instance when PETA has come up with rather odd name ideas. Earlier this year, PETA argued that the definition of 'rat' should be changed in the Cambridge Dictionary. It claimed that the present entry perpetuated harmful stereotypes about the small, furry mammal. 'The derogatory association fuels false perceptions about rats and promotes speciesism – the human held belief that other animals are inferior.'
Daily Record
4 days ago
- General
- Daily Record
People left divided over what to call the end slice of a loaf of bread
People have been left divided over what to call the end slice of a loaf of bread, with some questioning why they never thought of a name for it before while others argue over different terms It's a detail so trivial that it rarely warrants a second thought – but now, it has sparked a lively debate. The internet has been abuzz with discussions about what to call the end slice of a loaf of bread, leaving many baffled by the variety of names people have confessed to using. A Reddit user posed a simple question: "What do you call this?" accompanied by an image of the last piece of a loaf of bread. To their astonishment, they were swamped with responses from fellow Redditors – but consensus on a term was nowhere to be found. One commenter said: "I call it the heel. My kids call it the butt." While another added: "Can we call it a crust?" Another chimed in: "Half of a dad sandwich. Meaning the kids don't want it, so to avoid being wasteful, the dad ends up with two heels for his sandwich bread." Yet another added: "The end piece. Never heard anyone call it the heel until this comment section." And someone else admitted: "I didn't even think about it having a name!" Furthering the discussion, one person explained: "The crust is the other layer of the bread, but the end piece has crust on the sides as well as one of the faces, so it's majority crust. Thus, it's called the crust." Finally, another simply stated: "I just call it the end piece." The Cambridge Dictionary defines the correct term as 'heel'. But it's not only Brits who are divided over its name; it seems that different countries have their own unique terms for it too. A recent post on Taste of Home stated: "We've all heard the saying, 'the greatest thing since sliced bread'." The article reflects on why this old chestnut keeps popping up in conversation. "While it may be a phrase we've heard spoken more times than we ever needed to hear, there's a reason it's become commonplace. Sliced bread is incredible. Sandwiches, subs, toast-you name it, you can make it." The statement continued: "Whether it's some fresh ciabatta, banana bread or gluten-free pumpkin bread-it's all delicious. Even just a basic loaf of bread can make a bad day better. That's a fact! "But we've got some questions. You know, like, what is the end piece of bread called? It's time we settled the debate. "Norway and Sweden call it the 'skalk.' "It's referred to as the 'dupka' in Poland, the 'knust' or 'knerzel' in Germany and the 'kapje' in the Netherlands. Scotland has been known to call theirs 'outsiders'. "Fitting and to the point! You may find they're called 'la tapa' in Spanish or 'patka' in the Czech Republic. Whatever they're called, I know we can all agree about how tasty they can be."
Daily Mirror
4 days ago
- General
- Daily Mirror
Brits just learning what the end piece of a loaf of bread is called
Brits are only just learning what the end piece of a loaf of bread is called, and it turns out there are a few different names given to the least desirable slice The name for the end slice of a loaf of bread has sparked debate, with people just learning the different names that can be used for it. Reddit was ablaze with comments after a user posted a snap of the last piece of bread, asking: "What do you call this?" Responses poured in thick and fast, but it seemed no one was able to reach a consensus. One commenter chimed in: "I call it the heel. My kids call it the butt." While another pondered: "Can we call it a crust?" A third remarked: "Half of a dad sandwich. Meaning the kids don't want it, so to avoid being wasteful, the dad ends up with two heels for his sandwich bread." Another chimed in: "The end piece. Never heard anyone call it the heel until this comment section." And someone else confessed: "I didn't even think about it having a name!" Meanwhile someone else said: "The crust is the other layer of the bread, but the end piece has crust on the sides as well as one of the faces, so it's majority crust. Thus, it's called the crust." Finally, one more said simply: "I just call it the end piece." Despite the Cambridge Dictionary settling on 'heel' as the official term, it seems this bread-based conundrum is a common problem. Taste of Home states: "We've all heard the saying, 'the greatest thing since sliced bread'. "While it may be a phrase we've heard spoken more times than we ever needed to hear, there's a reason it's become commonplace. Sliced bread is incredible. Sandwiches, subs, toast-you name it, you can make it. "Whether it's some fresh ciabatta, banana bread or gluten-free pumpkin bread-it's all delicious. Even just a basic loaf of bread can make a bad day better. That's a fact!" "But we've got some questions. You know, like, what is the end piece of bread called? It's time we settled the debate. "Norway and Sweden call it the 'skalk.' That one might be my favourite. "It's referred to as the 'dupka' in Poland, the 'knust' or 'knerzel' in Germany and the 'kapje' in the Netherlands. Scotland has been known to call theirs 'outsiders'. "Fitting and to the point! You may find they're called 'la tapa' in Spanish or 'patka' in the Czech Republic. Whatever they're called, I know we can all agree about how tasty they can be."
