erratically

[ih-rat-ik-lee]

adverb

1. 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.

2. 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

• nonerratically adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of erratically¹

First recorded in 1610–20; erratic ( def. ) + -ally ( def. )

Example Sentences

Woo collapses on the ground, his tiny chest rising and falling erratically.

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Law enforcement reported to a “male subject with a knife acting erratically.”

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Mr Bayoh, who was 31, was restrained by six police officers after he was allegedly spotted carrying a knife and behaving erratically on a street in Kirkcaldy.

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A crisis occurred Easter Sunday — April 21, 2019 — when Eric was acting erratically at work and was hospitalized that evening after Taylor had driven him home.

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Denizens who behave erratically may be sent off to a nearby asylum.

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Related Words

• carelessly www.thesaurus.com