On the airplane, there is a message that says “Your seat cushion can be used as a flotation device” I’ve seen this on older airplanes, and newer ones (I was just on a 737-700)
It seems to me the proper spelling would be “floatation”, the root word being “float”. Would usage of the prefix “flo-” somehow make the spelling I see on the plane correct?
My dictionary (Webster’s) lists floatation as an alternate spelling of the quite correct flotation. So you could, I suppose, use that spelling and argue that you’re correct. Mainstream usage, though, would be flotation.
I think it’s just part of America’s unofficial spelling reform. Does anyone spell them “doughnuts” instead of “donuts” anymore?
It bothered me too; I looked it up and saw that it was an alternate spelling. Seems that when flotation is used that it should be pronounced flot- (rhymes with not) rather than float-.
Merriam-Webster Online says:
The real question is not “What happened to the ‘a’?” but “How’d the ‘a’ get there in the first place?”