erratically
Americanadverb
-
in a way that deviates from what is normal or proper.
When other employees noticed she was behaving erratically, the store installed cameras and caught her stealing pills.
-
without any definite direction or pattern; in an irregular or inconsistent way.
The cyclone moved erratically westward and southward for two days while slowly strengthening into a tropical storm.
Since I was fourteen I've kept a journal, albeit somewhat erratically at times.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of erratically
First recorded in 1610–20; erratic ( def. ) + -ally ( def. )
Explanation
If you do something erratically, you do it in an arbitrary or irregular way. Driving erratically is a good way to get pulled over by a traffic cop. A new bike rider might pedal erratically up and down the street, swerving and stopping suddenly. Or, your anxiety about getting an important grade could make you behave erratically, chewing your nails nervously one minute and laughing loudly the next. Things that are erratic are uneven or unpredictable, and the Latin root is erraticus, "wandering, straying, or roving."
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.
A weather front will erratically move southwards during Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.
From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2026
The main fire in the southwest Gironde region, where Bordeaux is located, was "extremely intense and unpredictable... generating its own winds and advancing erratically toward the Bordeaux metropolitan area", he said on X.
From Barron's ● Jul. 26, 2026
The El Niño climate pattern materializes erratically every two to seven years and can last up to a year.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026
Police say witnesses reported the vehicle "driving erratically" around the top of the Great Orme.
From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026
The wind, however, was gusting erratically out of the west, quartering across the racecourse at roughly a forty-five-degree angle, pushing in bursts and fits at the starboard side of the shell.
From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown
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