error

[ er-er ]

noun

1. a deviation from accuracy or correctness; a mistake, as in action or speech:

   His speech contained several factual errors.

   Synonyms: oversight, slip, blunder

2. belief in something untrue; the holding of mistaken opinions.
3. the condition of believing what is not true:

   in error about the date.

4. a moral offense; wrongdoing; sin.

   Synonyms: misdeed, trespass, transgression, fault

5. Baseball. a misplay that enables a base runner to reach base safely or advance a base, or a batter to have a turn at bat prolonged, as the dropping of a ball batted in the air, the fumbling of a batted or thrown ball, or the throwing of a wild ball, but not including a passed ball or wild pitch.
6. Mathematics. the difference between the observed or approximately determined value and the true value of a quantity.
7. Law.
   1. a mistake in a matter of fact or law in a case tried in a court of record.
   2. writ of error.
8. Philately. a stamp distinguished by an error or errors in design, engraving, selection of inks, or setting up of the printing apparatus. Compare freak ¹( def 5 ), variety ( def 7 ).

error

/ ˈɛrə /

noun

1. a mistake or inaccuracy, as in action or speech

   a typing error

2. an incorrect belief or wrong judgment
3. the condition of deviating from accuracy or correctness, as in belief, action, or speech

   he was in error about the train times

4. deviation from a moral standard; wrongdoing

   he saw the error of his ways

5. maths statistics a measure of the difference between some quantity and an approximation to or estimate of it, often expressed as a percentage

   an error of 5%

6. statistics See type I error type II error

Derived Forms

• ˌerror-ˈfree, adjective

Other Words From

• error·less adjective
• error·less·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of error¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English errour, from Latin errōr-, stem of error, equivalent to err + -or ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of error¹

C13: from Latin, from errāre to err

Idioms and Phrases

see comedy of errors ; trial and error .

Synonym Study

See mistake.

Example Sentences

The toy company quickly apologized for the gaffe, calling the misprint an “unfortunate error.”

From Los Angeles Times

The revelation of E.On's bill error comes after the latest official figures show inflation rose as a result of higher energy prices.

From BBC

It has taken time, trial and error to get that right.

From BBC

Democratic and Republican activists are asking voters to correct technical errors on their ballots in several close races that could determine control of the House.

From Los Angeles Times

Instead of minor errors, the models' performance would periodically drop unpredictably under pressure.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• blunder
• failure
• fault
• flaw
• glitch
• inaccuracy
• lapse
• miscalculation
• miscue
• misdeed
• mismanagement
• misstep
• misunderstanding
• offense
• omission
• sin
• transgression
• wrongdoing