Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

spelling bee

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.74 in modern English

Syllables
spelling bee
IPA
16
Scrabble Score
11
Letters
1
Syllables
8
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A spelling contest or competition where contestants, usually children, are asked to spell out words (orally, letter by letter); the individual or team spelling the most words correctly wins.

Etymology

From spelling + bee (“get-together, (social) gathering, contest”). (The earliest known evidence of the phrase in print dates back to 1850.)

Inflected Forms

spelling bees (plural)

Phrases

apple bee geography bee husking bee quilting bee sewing bee

Frequently Paired Words

apple bee geography bee husking bee quilting bee sewing bee

Synonyms

spelldown spelling match spelling contest

Questions

What does spelling bee mean?
A spelling contest or competition where contestants, usually children, are asked to spell out words (orally, letter by letter); the individual or team spelling the most words correctly wins.
Where does spelling bee come from?
From spelling + bee (“get-together, (social) gathering, contest”). (The earliest known evidence of the phrase in print dates back to 1850.)

How to pronounce spelling bee

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “spelling bee”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “spelling bee”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “spelling bee” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.