Error Comes From a Word for Wandering
An error is a mistake. The Latin verb behind it means to wander, which is why a knight-errant and an erratic driver share the root.
An error is a mistake or an incorrect belief. Latin *errare* means to wander, and its descendants keep the image of straying from a path: an *erratic* driver wanders across lanes, a *knight-errant* wanders in search of adventure, and an *erratum* is a place where a text wandered from the truth. To err is to go off course. The proverb *to err is human* comes from Alexander Pope, completing it with *to forgive, divine*.
- A mistake. *A clerical error.*
- Err — to make a mistake. *To err is human.*
- Erratic — unpredictable. *Erratic behaviour.*
- Erratum — a correction notice. *An erratum slip.*
- Errant — straying. *A knight-errant.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | error | A small error. |
| Plural | errors | Several errors. |
| Verb | err | To err. |
| Adjective | erroneous | An erroneous claim. |
| Latin | errare | To wander. |
- The report contained several errors.Mistakes.
- Better to err on the side of caution.Idiom.
- Errare means to wander.Etymology.
The wandering family
- Error — a straying from the truth
- Erratic — moving unpredictably
- Errant — wandering, as in knight-errant
- Erratum — a published correction
- Aberration — a wandering away from the normal
Latin *error*, a wandering or mistake, from *errare*, to wander or stray.
How is err pronounced?
Traditionally to rhyme with her, though the pronunciation rhyming with air is now widely used and accepted.
What does err on the side of caution mean?
If you must be wrong, be wrong in the safer direction. The image is of straying deliberately in one direction.