Meanings
plural spelling bees
- A formal competition in which participants, usually children, are asked to spell out words aloud according to established orthographic conventions, and in which the participants advance by spelling the designated words correctly.
Synonyms: spelldown, spelling B, spelling match
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA formal competition in which participants, usually children, are asked to spell out words aloud according to established orthographic conventions, and in which the participants advance by spelling the designated words correctly.
More synonyms by meaning
nouna contest in which you are eliminated if you fail to spell a word correctly
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
From spelling + bee (“get-together, (social) gathering, contest”). The earliest known evidence of the phrase in print first appears c. 1850.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic مُسَابَقَة تَهْجِئَة
- مُسَابَقَة تَهْجِئَةspelling contest or competition
Bulgarian състезание по правопис
- състезание по правопис (săstezanie po pravopis)spelling contest or competition
French compétition de l’épellation
- compétition de l’épellationspelling contest or competition
German Buchstabierwettbewerb, Rechtschreibwettbewerb
- Buchstabierwettbewerbspelling contest or competition
- Rechtschreibwettbewerbspelling contest or competition
Hungarian helyesírásverseny, helyesíróverseny
- helyesírásversenyspelling contest or competition
- helyesíróversenyspelling contest or competition
- betűzőversenyspelling contest or competition
Cite this entry
spelling bee. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/spelling%20bee
“spelling bee.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/spelling%20bee. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “spelling bee,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/spelling%20bee.
Source: spelling bee on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.