Sameer Mishra, from West Lafayette, Ind., reacts to spelling his word to win the 2008 Scripps National Spelling Bee on Friday in Washington. The 13-year-old aced guerdon to win the 81st edition of the bee.

Washington ? As it turned out, Sameer Mishra provided more than just comic relief at the 2008 Scripps National Spelling Bee. He ended up winning the title.

The 13-year-old from West Lafayette, Ind., who often had the audience laughing with his one-line commentaries was all business when he aced “guerdon” – a word that appropriately means “something that one has earned or gained” – to win the 81st version of the bee Friday night.

“I don’t know about comedy lines, but my parents have been telling me since the beginning that I should always stay calm, cool and collected,” said Sameer, who likes playing the violin and video games, and hopes one day to be a neurosurgeon.

Sameer, appearing in the bee for the fourth time and a top 20 finisher the last two years, clenched both fists and put his hands to his face after spelling the winning word. He won a tense duel over first-time participant Sidharth Chand, 12, of Bloomfield Hills, Mich., who finally stumbled on “prosopopoeia,” a word describing a type of figure of speech.

Sameer was a crowd favorite throughout the tournament. When told one of his words in the semifinals was a dessert, he deadpanned: “That sounds good right now.” He rolled his eyes and muttered “wonderful” when told that one of his words had five different language roots. He once asked “Are you sure there are no alternate pronunciations?” and later uttered “That’s a relief” after initially mishearing the word “numnah” (a type of sheepskin pad).

And what did he have to say while hoisting the heavy trophy? “I’m really, really weak.”

Sameer is coached by his sister, Shruti, a high school senior and three-time spelling bee competitor. The first-place finish won him $35,000 in cash and more than $5,000 in other prizes.

Olathe, Kan., seventh-grader Kavya Shivashankar misspelled ecrase in round four, giving it an extra “e” at the end.