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Errant has a split history. It comes from Anglo-French, a language in which two confusingly similar verbs with identical spellings ("errer") coexisted. One errer meant "to err" and comes from the Latin errare, meaning "to wander" or "to err." The second errer meant "to travel," and traces to the Latin iter, meaning "road" or "journey." Both "errer" homographs contributed to the development of "errant," which not surprisingly has to do with both moving about and being mistaken. A "knight-errant" travels around in search of adventures. Cowboys round up "errant calves." An "errant child" is one who misbehaves. (You might also see "arrant" occasionally - it's a word that originated as an alteration of "errant" and that usually means "extreme" or "shameless.")
Examples of errant in a Sentence
Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 27 Sep. 2025
Gebhardt showed his improvisational skills on a pair of first-half errant PAT conversions, running for one two-pointer and passing for another.
—Mike Waters, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 26 Sep. 2025
There were more than a few ugly moments for the Chiefs’ offense in the first half of Sunday’s 22-9 win over the Giants, but one errant pass in particular stood out.
—Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 25 Sep. 2025
Nico Hoerner scored from second base on McNeil’s errant throw to first base for the Cubs’ sixth run of the game.
—Will Sammon, New York Times, 24 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for errant
Cite this Entry
“Errant.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/errant. Accessed 30 Sep. 2025.
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errant
adjective
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