error
Americannoun
-
errors
plural
-
a deviation from accuracy or correctness; a mistake, as in action or speech.
His speech contained several factual errors.
-
belief in something untrue; the holding of mistaken opinions.
-
the condition of believing what is not true.
in error about the date.
-
a moral offense; wrongdoing; sin.
- Synonyms:
- misdeed, trespass, transgression, fault
-
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.
-
Mathematics. the difference between the observed or approximately determined value and the true value of a quantity.
-
Law.
-
a mistake in a matter of fact or law in a case tried in a court of record.
-
-
Philately. a stamp distinguished by an error or errors in design, engraving, selection of inks, or setting up of the printing apparatus.
noun
-
a mistake or inaccuracy, as in action or speech
a typing error
-
an incorrect belief or wrong judgment
-
the condition of deviating from accuracy or correctness, as in belief, action, or speech
he was in error about the train times
-
deviation from a moral standard; wrongdoing
he saw the error of his ways
-
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%
-
statistics See type I error type II error
Synonym Usage
See mistake.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of error
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English errour, from Latin errōr-, stem of error, equivalent to err + -or 1
Explanation
"I'm sorry, sir, there's been some sort of error in the kitchen," is what a restaurant waiter might say to a patron who ordered the fish but was mistakenly served a plateful of worms instead. Simply put, an error is a mistake. However, that mistake is more likely due to a lapse in judgment or skill than to an accident. A plane crash that occurs after the pilot mistakenly presses the "pilot eject" button is said to be caused by "human error." A baseball play in which the pitcher throws the ball to second base instead of first because he was distracted by a pretty girl in the stands is an error — one that might cost his team the game.
Vocabulary lists containing error
Common Five-letter Words for Wordle, List 2
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Novel Study: The Crucible, Act 1
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Common Core Grade 5, List 3
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Shake Shack denied charging “no tip” fees after a viral TikTok appeared to show menu prices jumping when a customer declined a gratuity, blaming the error on a kiosk malfunction.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
The third-year Athletics shortstop played his 111th consecutive game without an error Sunday, setting a major league record at his position.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026
The presenter, believing they were still on air, was not actively monitoring their phone and did not immediately respond to calls from people at the station who had noticed the error, the report said.
From Barron's ● Aug. 10, 2026
A moderator error caused a delay in the removal, TikTok said, but the company alerted law enforcement to the situation, closed several subsequent streams within 90 seconds, and banned the account.
From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2026
“Well, never mind,” she said, realizing her error.
From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood
That’s a total of eight errors in 216 career games and 1,899 innings at shortstop.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026
Having a conviction thrown out is not enough to do so: A court can vacate someone’s conviction for a number of reasons, including an ineffective attorney or significant errors committed by the judge or prosecution.
From Salon ● Aug. 10, 2026
Compared with their performance after receiving the placebo, they made substantially larger errors when attempting to reach their destinations.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 9, 2026
He has admitted errors in his work but denied plagiarism, saying his autism and a lack of adequate supervision early in his academic career may have contributed to those mistakes.
From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026
His role was to keep the official scorebook and put down the code that marked every measurable moment of the contests: hits, runs, strikeouts, stolen bases, errors, wild pitches.
From "Drama High" by Michael Sokolove
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
