errand

American  

[er-uhnd] / ˈɛr ənd /

noun

• errands
  plural

1. a short and quick trip to accomplish a specific purpose, as to buy something, deliver a package, or convey a message, often for someone else.

   Synonyms:

   chore, assignment, task, mission

2. the purpose of such a trip.

   He finished his errands.

   Synonyms:

   chore, assignment, task, mission

3. a special mission or function entrusted to a messenger; commission.

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errand British  

/ ˈɛrənd /

noun

1. a short trip undertaken to perform a necessary task or commission (esp in the phrase run errands )

2. the purpose or object of such a trip

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errand Idioms  

1. see fool's errand; run an errand.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• errands
  plural

Etymology

Origin of errand

First recorded before 900; Middle English erande, Old English ærende; cognate with Old High German āruntī; compare Old English ār “messenger,” Gothic airus; not related to err ( def. ), errant ( def. )

Explanation

An errand is a short trip to fulfill some small business. When you’re running errands, you’re making a bunch of these all at once. The noun errand can refer to the mission of the trip itself. If the lines are always long at the bank, then banking may be your least favorite errand. If you are off on a wild goose chase, you may be out on a fool's errand. If you are taking food or clothing to someone in need, then you are on an errand of mercy.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

errand errands

Don’t tell me this is a fool’s errand, that there’s no path, that this doesn’t make any sense.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026

Without the prescribed navigation I was accustomed to in a museum, this became a fool’s errand.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 17, 2026

My husband and I burst out laughing – not at that scene, or the clerk’s impromptu theatrics, but at this injection of delight into an otherwise mundane errand.

From Salon ● May 2, 2026

According to history, betting against Microsoft’s stock over the longer term has been a fool’s errand.

From MarketWatch ● Feb. 24, 2026

I’ve never been to the farmers market, or out on an errand, so I guess the last time would have been when I was six.

From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy

Holliday spends her volunteer time socializing over coffee and the newspaper, helping residents run errands, leading fitness classes on Saturday mornings and organizing game nights.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026

“They think they’ll always be able to haul the trash to the curb,” she said, or that they can manage their investments and drive around town to run errands.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 12, 2026

They often show him doing everyday activities such as "munchie runs" to supermarkets or shopping malls, visiting restaurants or running other errands.

From BBC ● Jun. 24, 2026

They said the couple were running errands for their wedding, which was weeks away.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2026

When Farmer remained in Haiti, White found himself running errands in Boston for projects in Cange, picking up things like sinks and other supplies that couldn’t be found in Haiti.

From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French