| | 1925 - gladiolus - Frank Neuhauser - Louisville Courier-Journal - Louisville, Kentucky |
| | 1926 - abrogate - Pauline Bell - Louisville Courier-Journal - Louisville, Kentucky |
| | 1927 - luxuriance - Dean Lucas - Akron Beacon Journal - Akron, Ohio |
| | 1928 - albumen - Betty Robinson - South Bend Tribune - South Bend, Indiana |
| | 1929 - asceticism - Virginia Hogan - Omaha World-Herald - Omaha, Nebraska |
| | 1930 - fracas - Helen Jensen - Des Moines Register & Tribune - Des Moines, Iowa |
| | 1931 - foulard - Ward Randall - White Hall Register-Republican - White Hall, Illinois |
| | 1932 - knack - Dorothy Greenwalk - Des Moines Register & Tribune - Des Moines, Iowa |
| | 1933 - torsion - Alma Roach - Akron Beacon Journal - Akron, Ohio |
| | 1934 - deteriorating - Sarah Wilson - Portland Evening Express - Portland, Maine |
| | 1935 - intelligible - Clara Mohler - Akron Beacon Journal - Akron, Ohio |
| | 1936 - interning - Jean Trowbridge - Des Moines Register & Tribune - Des Moines, Iowa |
| | 1937 - promiscuous - Waneeta Beckley - Louisville Courier-Journal - Louisville, Kentucky |
| | 1938 - sanitarium - Marian Richardson - Louisville Times - Louisville, Kentucky |
| | 1939 - canonical - Elizabeth Ann Rice - Worcester Telegram & Gazette - Worcester, Massachusetts |
| | 1940 - therapy - Laurel Kuykendall - The Knoxville News-Sentinel - Knoxville, Tennessee |
| | 1941 - initials - Louis Edward Sissman - Detroit News - Detroit, Michigan |
| | 1942 - sacrilegious - Richard Earnhart - El Paso Herald-Post - El Paso, Texas |
| | 1946 - semaphore - John McKinney - Des Moines Register & Tribune - Des Moines, Iowa |
| | 1947 - chlorophyll - Mattie Lou Pollard - Atlanta Journal - Atlanta, Georgia |
| | 1948 - psychiatry - Jean Chappelear - Akron Beacon Journal - Akron, Ohio |
| | 1949 - dulcimer - Kim Calvin - Canton Repository - Canton, Ohio |
| | 1950 - meticulosity - Diana Reynard - Cleveland Press - Cleveland, Ohio |
| | - - and Colquitt Dean - Atlanta Journal - Atlanta, Georgia |
| | 1951 - insouciant - Irving Belz - Memphis Press Scimitar - Memphis, Tennessee |
| | 1952 - vignette - Doris Ann Hall - Winston-Salem Journal - Winston-Salem, North Carolina |
| | 1953 - soubrette - Elizabeth Hess - Arizona Republic - Phoenix, Arizona |
| | 1954 - transept - William Cashore - Norristown Times Herald - Norristown, Pennsylvania |
| | 1955 - crustaceology - Sandra Sloss - St. Louis Globe-Democrat - St. Louis, Missouri |
| | 1956 - condominium - Melody Sachko - The Pittsburgh Press - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
| | 1957 - schappe - Sandra Owen - Canton Repository - Canton, Ohio |
| | - - and Dana Bennett - Rocky Mountain News - Denver, Colorado |
| | 1958 - syllepsis - Jolitta Schlehuber - Topeka Daily Capital - Topeka, Kansas |
| | 1959 - catamaran - Joel Montgomery - Rocky Mountain News - Denver, Colorado |
| | 1960 - eudaemonic - Henry Feldman - The Knoxville News-Sentinel - Knoxville, Tennessee |
| | 1961 - smaragdine - John Capehart - Tulsa Tribune - Tulsa, Oklahoma |
| | 1962 - esquamulose - Nettie Crawford - El Paso Herald-Post - El Paso, Texas |
| | - - and Michael Day - St. Louis Globe-Democrat - St. Louis, Missouri |
| | 1963 - equipage - Glen Van Slyke III - The Knoxville News-Sentinel - Knoxville, Tennessee |
| | 1964 - sycophant - William Kerek - Akron Beacon Journal - Akron, Ohio |
| | 1965 - eczema - Michael Kerpan Jr. - Tulsa Tribune - Tulsa, Oklahoma |
| | 1966 - ratoon - Robert A. Wake - Houston Chronicle - Houston, Texas |
| | 1967 - chihuahua - Jennifer Reinke - The Omaha World-Herald - Omaha, Nebraska |
| | 1968 - abalone - Robert L. Walters - The Topeka Daily Capital - Topeka, Kansas |
| | 1969 - interlocutory - Susan Yoachum - Dallas Morning News - Dallas, Texas |
| | 1970 - croissant - Libby Childress - Winston-Salem Journal & Sentinel - Winston-Salem, North Carolina |
| | 1971 - shalloon - Jonathan Knisely1 - Philadelphia Bulletin - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| | 1972 - macerate - Robin Kral - Lubbock Avalanche-Journal - Lubbock, Texas |
| | 1973 - vouchsafe - Barrie Trinkle - Fort Worth Press - Fort Worth, Texas |
| | 1974 - hydrophyte - Julie Ann Junkin - Birmingham Post-Herald - Birmingham, Alabama |
| | 1975 - incisor - Hugh Tosteson - San Juan Star - San Juan, Puerto Rico |
| | 1976 - narcolepsy - Tim Kneale - Syracuse Herald Journal-American - Syracuse, New York |
| | 1977 - cambist - John Paola - The Pittsburgh Press - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
| | 1978 - deification - Peg McCarthy - The Topeka Capital-Journal - Topeka, Kansas |
| | 1979 - maculature - Katie Kerwin - Rocky Mountain News - Denver, Colorado |
| | 1980 - elucubrate - Jacques Bailly - Rocky Mountain News - Denver, Colorado |
| | 1981 - sarcophagus - Paige Pipkin - El Paso Herald-Post - El Paso, Texas |
| | 1982 - psoriasis - Molly Dieveney - Rocky Mountain News - Denver, Colorado |
| | 1983 - Purim - Blake Giddens - El Paso Herald-Post - El Paso, Texas |
| | 1984 - luge - Daniel Greenblatt - Loudoun Times-Mirror - Leesburg, Virginia |
| | 1985 - milieu - Balu Natarajan - Chicago Tribune - Chicago, Illinois |
| | 1986 - odontalgia - Jon Pennington - The Patriot News - Harrisburg, Pennsylvania |
| | 1987 - staphylococci - Stephanie Petit - The Pittsburgh Press - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
| | 1988 - elegiacal - Rageshree Ramachandran - The Sacramento Bee - Sacramento, California |
| | 1989 - spoliator - Scott Isaacs - Rocky Mountain News - Denver, Colorado |
| | 1990 - fibranne - Amy Marie Dimak - The Seattle Times - Seattle, Washington |
| | 1991 - antipyretic - Joanne Lagatta - Wisconsin State Journal - Madison, Wisconsin |
| | 1992 - lyceum - Amanda Goad - The Richmond News Leader - Richmond, Virginia |
| | 1993 - kamikaze - Geoff Hooper - The Commercial Appeal - Memphis, Tennessee |
| | 1994 - antediluvian - Ned G. Andrews - The Knoxville News-Sentinel - Knoxville, Tennessee |
| | 1995 - xanthosis - Justin Tyler Carroll - The Commercial Appeal - Memphis, Tennessee |
| | 1996 - vivisepulture - Wendy Guey - The Palm Beach Post - West Palm Beach, Florida |
| | 1997 - euonym - Rebecca Sealfon - New York Daily News - New York, New York |
| | 1998 - chiaroscurist - Jody-Anne Maxwell - Phillips & Phillips Stationery Suppliers - Kingston, Jamaica |
| | 1999 - logorrhea - Nupur Lala - The Tampa Tribune - Tampa, Florida |
| | 2000 - demarche - George Abraham Thampy - St. Louis Post-Dispatch - St. Louis, Missouri |
| | 2001 - succedaneum - Sean Conley - Aitkin Independent Age - Aitkin, Minnesota |
| | 2002 - prospicience - Pratyush Buddiga - Rocky Mountain News - Denver, Colorado |
| | 2003 - pococurante - Sai R. Gunturi - The Dallas Morning News - Dallas, Texas |
| | 2004 - autochthonous - David Scott Pilarski Tidmarsh - South Bend Tribune - South Bend, Indiana |
| | 2005 - appoggiatura - Anurag Kashyap - San Diego Union-Tribune - San Diego, California |
| | 2006 - Ursprache - Katharine "Kerry" Close - Asbury Park Press/Home News Tribune - Spring Lake, New Jersey |
| | 2007 - serrefine - Evan O'Dorney - ? - Danville, Calif |