A National Spelling Bee champion shares what it takes to win

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+ Fresh Air Wild Card with Rachel Martin It's Been a Minute Planet Money Get NPR+ More Podcasts & Shows Search Newsletters NPR Shop Tiny Desk New Music Friday All Songs Considered Music Features Live Sessions About NPR Diversity Support Careers Press Ethics A National Spelling Bee champion shares what it takes to win The 2025 Scripps National Spelling Bee champ shares what it takes to spell it right in 2026. National A National Spelling Bee champion shares what it takes to win May 27, 20264:30 PM ET Heard on All Things Considered By Hosts , Gabriel J. Sánchez , Tinbete Ermyas A National Spelling Bee champion shares what it takes to win Listen &middot; 2:41 2:41 Transcript Toggle more options Download Embed Embed "> <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/nx-s1-5835201/nx-s1-9787558" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript The 2025 Scripps National Spelling Bee champ shares what it takes to spell it right in 2026. Sponsor Message SCOTT DETROW, HOST: This week, some of the youngest spellers in the country are competing one letter at a time at the Scripps National Spelling Bee.

+ FAIZAN ZAKI: I really like the word sophrosyne. It's spelled S-O-P-H-R-O-S-Y-N-E. JUANA SUMMERS, HOST: That's the 2025 Scripps National Spelling Bee champion, 14-year-old Faizan Zaki. That's spelled... FAIZAN: F-A-I-Z-A-N Z-A-K-I. DETROW: He is from Allen, Texas. FAIZAN: When I won my school spelling bee for the first time in first grade, it was just such an amazing experience. I mean, it was a small accomplishment in the grand scheme of things, but for me, it was really the motivator that pushed me for the rest of my journey. SUMMERS: Zaki says his parents initially encouraged him to participate in spelling bees. FAIZAN: But as I grew older, I realized that I really was pretty good at this and I had the capability to go beyond what my parents wanted me to do. DETROW: Spelling became his focus, and breaking down words became his mission. SUMMERS: Zaki made his first appearance at the Scripps National Spelling Bee in 2019. FAIZAN: So I think I got around, like, 300th place, so it definitely wasn't my best finish. But nonetheless, I wasn't discouraged by that. DETROW: By 2024, Zaki found himself in the midst of a finalist lightning round... (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: Scintillante. BRUHAT SOMA: S-C-I-N-T-I-L-L-A-N-T-E. (SOUNDBITE OF BELL DINGING) SUMMERS: ...The top two contenders spelling as many words as they can. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: Bruhat, you correctly spelled a total of 29 words. (APPLAUSE) UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: Faizan, you correctly spelled a total of 20 words. That means that, Bruhat Soma, you are the 2024... (CHEERING) DETROW: Zaki was the runner-up. FAIZAN: While I hadn't been expecting to even go to the finals, it definitely was heart-crushing. SUMMERS: The summer after his loss was wall-to-wall words, preparing himself to be the last speller on stage. DETROW: And finally, in 2025... (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: Eclaircissement. FAIZAN: Eclaircissement. E-C-L-A-I-R-C-I-S-S-E-M-E-N-T. Eclaircissement. UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: That is correct. (CHEERING) FAIZAN: That year, there was a lot of pressure on me to win. After getting second the previous year, a lot of people expected me to replicate my finish or even do better. And that pressure did put a lot on me. SUMMERS: For spellers who might find themselves in the final round of the bee, Zaki has some words of wisdom. FAIZAN: Just try not to be nervous. Stay calm. Especially to the spellers, you all have been preparing for so long for this moment. DETROW: And to this year's contestants, good L-U-C-K. SUMMERS: Nailed it. (SOUNDBITE OF ISAAC STERN, FRANZ WAXMAN AND UNKNOWN SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA'S PERFORMANCE OF RIMSKY-KORSAKOV'S "FLIGHT OF THE BUMBLEBEE") Copyright &copy; 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record. Facebook Flipboard Email Read & Listen Home News Culture Music Podcasts & Shows Connect Newsletters Facebook Instagram Press Public Editor Corrections Transcripts Contact & Help About NPR Overview Diversity NPR Network Accessibility Ethics Finances Get Involved Support Public Radio Sponsor NPR NPR Careers NPR Shop NPR Extra Terms of Use Privacy Your Privacy Choices Text Only Sponsor Message Sponsor Message Become an NPR sponsor (function () { var loadPageJs = function () { (window.webpackJsonp=window.webpackJsonp||[]).push([[22],{1169:function(e,n,c){e.exports=c(321)},321:function(e,n,c){"use strict";c.p=NPR.serverVars.webpackPublicPath,Promise.all([c.e(1),c.e(2),c.e(3),c.e(4),c.e(82)]).then(function(e){c(3),c(1141),c(116),c(95),c(52),c(491),c(240),c(102),c(104),c(1142),c(144),c(1143),c(239),c(48),c(1144)}.bind(null,c)).catch(c.oe)}},[[1169,0]]]); }; if (document.readyState === 'complete') { loadPageJs(); } else { window.addEventListener('load', function load() { window.removeEventListener('load', load, false); loadPageJs(); }); } })();