In my last post, I solicited examples of faulty grammar and misspelled words in teachers’ and parents’ notes. It’s only fair that I cite an error of my own.
In a headline in the Home & Garden section Saturday (Aug. 27), I used the word “fauna” when I meant “flora.” I confused the two words even though I know which is which. “Flora” means plants as a group, especially those of a certain region or time, and “fauna” is the corresponding word that means animals as a group.
So a correction appears in today’s (Aug. 30) paper on page 2A. I haven’t been responsible for one of those 2A corrections in a while. It’s embarrassing, but I was reminded of something that I should keep in mind. In other words, I learned a lesson. Part of our process is to write an internal memo to explain how the error happened and how such an error could have been prevented. I noted in the memo to my bosses that I plan to stick to plain words, such as “plants” and “animals,” as much as possible.
This article was originally posted by the Raleigh News & Observer, a subsidiary of The McClatchy Co.; is posted here to provide continuity; and is copyright © 2011 The News & Observer Publishing Company, which reserves the right to remove this post.