The Great Ganesha

Apparently, the reason why 13-year-old SamirPatel lost out on two consecutive Spelling Bees is because he’s not in touch with his roots. Word roots, that is.

In 2006, Mr. Patel lost in the seventh round thanks to just such a word, eremacausis (“gradual oxidation of organic matter from exposure to air and moisture”).

The word sounds like it should come from the Greek eremos (suggesting solitude) or aero (for air). In fact, it is the only word in Webster’s to come from the Greek erema, meaning “gently”.

Mr. Patel crashed out of the competition with a-e-r-o-m-o-c-a-u-s-i-s. This year [2007] he blew his last chance to win a title over clevis (a U-shaped piece of iron). He panicked over the information that its roots were “probably Scandinavian” and opted for c-l-e-v-i-c-e. The ESPN commentators were stunned. [link]

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