erratically

American  

[ih-rat-ik-lee] / ɪˈræt ɪk li /

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.

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Other Word Forms

• nonerratically adverb

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

Shortly after, deputies responded to reports of a man acting erratically on the football field at Newbury Park High School, about a mile away.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 7, 2026

“Markets can gyrate and change their opinions regularly, erratically, and are often quite wrong,” said Rick Rieder, BlackRock’s chief investment officer of global fixed income, in emailed comments Friday.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 14, 2026

Nick Reiner, who lived in a guest property at his parents' home, had attended comedian Conan O'Brien's glitzy party on Saturday, December 13 with his parents, where some attendees reportedly spoke of his behaving erratically.

From Barron's • Jan. 7, 2026

Ernie Gorrie says his car still performs erratically, stumped by signals like flashing yellow lights, five years after he received the first FSD software.

From BBC • Dec. 26, 2025

With a last affectionate glance at the beanfield, the santo carver pushed on, walking, sometimes stumbling, erratically along the dusty road, leaving rattled grasshoppers and nervous little butterflies in his wake.

From "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols

Related Words

• carelessly