The 91st Scripps National Spelling Bee has a champion. Karthik Nemmani became the winner of the bee after successfully spelling the word "koinonia." Koinonia is defined as "the Christian fellowship or body of believers," according to Merriam-Webster. The fourteen-year-old champion is an eighth-grader from Scoggins Middle School in McKinney, Texas. By clinching the title, Karthik has won 40-thousand-dollars in cash from the E.W. Scripps Co. and also a 25-hundred dollar cash prize from Merriam-Webster. The 2018 Scripps Spelling Bee featured the largest number of contestants in history, with a total of 516 participants. Of the 516 contestants, 41 participated in the finals Thursday night in Maryland.
Photo: Getty Images