The Fall 2025 Vocabulary Bowl set a new record, with nearly one million learners worldwide mastering more than 5.3 million words

SAN MATEO, Calif., Feb. 4, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- 5,323,633. Yes, you read that right: 5.3 million! That's how many words were mastered in the Fall 2025 Vocabulary Bowl, making Season 13 the biggest in the competition's history. Nearly one million students, supported by more than 65,000 teachers from 6,000 schools across 120 countries, raced to expand their vocabularies, compete for top honors and prove that word power adds up fast.

In the U.S., schools competed in three divisions based on enrollment size: Division I (1,000+ students), Division II (500-999 students) and Division III (up to 499 students). International schools, teachers and individual learners also faced off in their own brackets.

Some household names returned to the top. Others rewrote the script.

Sound familiar? Saint Thomas Aquinas High School is back. The Florida school clinched the Fall 2025 championship title by mastering an impressive 88,000 words, outpacing last season's breakout winner, Woodland Middle School (TN). Woodland still made a strong showing, finishing second overall and first in its division.

Here's where things got interesting: DuBois Area High School (PA) was dethroned in Division II by steady state-wide standout Coweta High School (OK), which claimed its first-ever divisional title. And the Sunshine State stayed busy, with three Florida schools earning spots among this season's top rookie winners.

Back to our usual programming: Buckingham Collegiate Academy (CA) extended its dynasty with an eighth consecutive Division III high school championship. Muscatel Middle School (CA) locked in its third Division III middle school win, while Fred J Page Middle School (TN) kept its momentum rolling with a second Division I middle school title.

Internationally, the competition was just as fierce: France's École Jeannine Manuel claimed the top international spot, unseating Singapore's Nan Hua Primary School. And new this season, schools from Saudi Arabia and Australia put in the work to break into the international top 10.

Behind every big finish was a teacher inspiring his or her classroom and school to rack up points. Four of the top 10 U.S. teachers came from Mayville High School (MI), while overall international winner École Jeannine Manuel also claimed four of the top 10 international teacher spots.

The division winners for the Fall 2025 Season are (an asterisk indicates the school also had a top 10 teacher):

• Division I (1,000 students or more):
  • High School: Saint Thomas Aquinas High School* (Fort Lauderdale, Florida)
  • Middle and Elementary School: Fred J Page Middle School (Franklin, Tennessee)
• Division II (500-999 students):
  • High School: Coweta High School (Coweta, Oklahoma)
  • Middle and Elementary School: Woodland Middle School (Brentwood, Tennessee)
• Division III (up to 499 students):
  • High School: Buckingham Collegiate Charter Academy* (Vacaville, California)
  • Middle and Elementary School: Muscatel Middle School* (Rosemead, California)

U.S. state and territory champions are listed below, with the top high school listed first, followed by the leading middle or elementary school:

• Alabama: Faith Christian School, Douglas Middle School
• Alaska: Minto School, Anchor Lutheran School
• American Samoa: Pacific Horizons School
• Arizona: Red Mountain High School, Sierra Verde STEAM Academy
• Arkansas: Central High School, Washington Junior High School
• California: Buckingham Collegiate Charter Academy*, Muscatel Middle School*
• Colorado: Broomfield High School, Paonia Elementary School*
• Connecticut: Plainville High School, Michael Wallace Middle School
• Delaware: Thomas McKean High School, Saint John the Beloved School
• District of Columbia: Benjamin Banneker Academic High School, Inspired Teaching Demo School
• Florida: Saint Thomas Aquinas High School*, Viera Charter School*
• Georgia: Hebron Christian Academy Middle High School, BIA Charter School
• Guam: Harvest Christian Academy
• Hawaii: Kalani High School, Kaimuki Middle School
• Idaho: Capital High School, Canfield Middle School
• Illinois: Oak Lawn Community High School, Macomb Junior Senior High School
• Indiana: Manchester Junior Senior High School, East Central Middle School
• Iowa: Lenox Junior Senior High School, Hoover Middle School
• Kansas: Lincoln Junior Senior High School, Jefferson West Middle School
• Kentucky: Boyle County High School, Crittenden County Middle School
• Louisiana: John Curtis Christian High School, Cecilia Junior High School
• Maine: Sacopee Valley High School, Wells Junior High School
• Maryland: Chesapeake Math & IT PC - N High School, North Salisbury Elementary School
• Massachusetts: Diman Regional Vocational Technical High School, Tantasqua Regional Junior High School
• Michigan: Mayville High School*, Mayville Middle School
• Minnesota: Luverne High School, Minnetonka Middle School West
• Mississippi: Jackson Academy, McLain Attendance Center
• Missouri: Thomas W Kelly High School, Green Forest
• Montana: Lincoln County High School, Ben Steele Middle School
• Nebraska: Southwest Junior Senior High School, Johnson Crossing Academic Center
• Nevada: Sig Rogich Middle School
• New Hampshire: Londonderry High School, Pelham Memorial School
• New Jersey: Saint Benedict's Preparatory School, Manalapan - Englishtown Middle School
• New Mexico: Artesia Senior High School, The Montessori Elementary Middle School
• New York: James Madison High School*, Great Neck North Middle School
• North Carolina: Bradford Preparatory School, McGee's Crossroads Middle School
• North Dakota: Wishek Public School, Mandan Middle School
• Ohio: Walnut Hills High School, National Inventors Hall of Fame STEM Middle School*
• Oklahoma: Coweta High School, Owasso Eighth Grade Center
• Oregon: Marist High School, Nyssa Middle School
• Pennsylvania: DuBois Area High School*, Penn Alexander School
• Rhode Island: Classical High School, Immaculate Conception Regional School
• South Carolina: Catawba Ridge High School, Saint Andrew School
• South Dakota: Castlewood School, Harrisburg North Middle School
• Tennessee: Winchester Christian Academy, Woodland Middle School
• Texas: Carnegie Vanguard High School, Hogg Middle School
• Utah: Judge Memorial Catholic High School, Wasatch Junior High School
• Vermont: Enosburg Falls Middle High School, Christ the King School
• Virginia: Trinity Christian School, Douglass Park Elementary School*
• Washington: Moses Lake Christian Academy*, The Evergreen School
• West Virginia: Ravenswood High School, John Adams Middle School
• Wisconsin: Harold S Vincent High School, Oak Creek East Middle School
• Wyoming: Riverside Middle High School, Thermopolis Middle School

The Canadian Provincial Winners are:

• Alberta: École Secondaire Sainte Marguerite D'Youville
• British Columbia: West Point Grey Academy
• Ontario: YMCA Academy, Joan Of Arc Academy
• Quebec: College Notre-Dame-de-Lourdes
• Saskatchewan: Miller Comprehensive High School

The international division ranks schools based solely on total words mastered—no size brackets.

The International (non-US/Canada) Winners are:

• École Jeannine Manuel - France
• Nan Hua Primary School - Singapore
• Shanghai Soong Ching Ling School International Division - China
• One Target Education - Singapore
• Dhahran Ahliyya School - Saudi Arabia
• Lycée Condorcet Sydney- Australia
• Raffles Institution - Singapore
• The Galaxy School - Wadi - India
• The American College of Sofia - Bulgaria
• Menntaskólinn á Tröllaskaga - Iceland

The Top Rookie Schools are:

• Viera Charter School* - Florida
• Washington Junior High School - Arkansas
• Saint Sebastian Parish School* - Ohio
• All Saints Catholic School - Florida
• Wellington Landings Middle School - Florida

"Five million words mastered by nearly a million learners is an extraordinary achievement," said Paul Mishkin, CEO of IXL Learning, Vocabulary.com's parent company. "It speaks to the power of consistent practice, and to how engaging learning can be when students are excited to participate."

Learning that sticks
The Vocabulary Bowl turns vocabulary building into a game, making it fun and rewarding for learners of all ages and abilities. Students master words at their own pace using Vocabulary.com's adaptive technology, earning points for themselves and their schools. Teachers rally their classes by celebrating top scorers and team wins. Every word learned helps develop the reading, writing and communication skills students need for school and beyond.

For details on how to participate in the Spring 2026 season, visit https://www.vocabulary.com/bowl/rules.

About Vocabulary.com
Founded in 2010, Vocabulary.com transforms vocabulary instruction, teaching students the words they need to know to achieve more in school and life. The adaptive platform personalizes learning by identifying each student's vocabulary needs and creating individualized learning plans. With over 17,000 curated resources aligned with textbooks, novels and English language learner content, Vocabulary.com seamlessly integrates into any curriculum. Gamified features, including the Vocabulary Bowl, engage and motivate students through fun, interactive competitions. To date, 4 million learners have answered 8 billion questions and mastered 400 million words on Vocabulary.com. Vocabulary.com joined the IXL Learning family in 2020.

Press Contact
Joslyn Chesson
IXL Learning
press@ixl.com

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SOURCE IXL Learning