New Delhi: If "cymotrichous" sounds Greek to you, it is. Indian American Sukanya Roy won the 2011 Scripps National Spelling Bee crown to retain the coveted honour for the community for the fourth year in a row. She spelled the Greek synonym for wavy hair correctly.
Here are some tongue-twisting gems from the contest
Chlorthalidone: A sulfonamide C14H11ClN2O4S that is a long-acting diuretic used in the treatment of hypertension and in the treatment of edema associated especially with congestive heart failure, renal dysfunction, cirrhosis of the liver, or corticosteroid and estrogen therapy.
Dreikanter: A 3-faced pebble faceted by wind-blown sand
Renminbi: The currency of the People's Republic of China consisting of yuan
Helichrysum: Any plant of the widely cultivated genus Helichrysum, whose flowers retain their shape and colour when dried: family Asteraceae (composites)
Abhinaya: The expressive use of face or hands characteristic of the kathakali dance style of India
Capoeira: An Afro-Brazilian dance form that incorporates self-defense maneuvers
Cheongsam: A long dress with a high collar and slit skirt, traditionally worn by Chinese women
Opodeldoc: 1. A kind of plaster, said to have been invented by Mindererus, - used for external injuries. 2. A saponaceous, camphorated liniment; a solution of soap in alcohol, with the addition of camphor and essential oils; soap liniment.
Sorites: Of or relating to a form of argument in which a series of incomplete syllogisms is so arranged that the predicate of each premise forms the subject of the next until the subject of the first is joined with the predicate of the last in the conclusion. For example, if one argues that a given number of grains of sand does not make a heap and that an additional grain does not either, then to conclude that no additional amount of sand will make a heap is to construct a sorites argument.
Cymotrichous: Having wavy hair.
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