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

Erratically scheduled; - no more than twice a month, often less.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 5, 2015

Erratically, although his T-4 finish at 11-under 277 included torrents of brilliance.

From Golf Digest • Apr. 13, 2010

Erratically it jerked and spun, with spasmodic torsion.

From Sea and Sardinia by Lawrence, D. H. (David Herbert)

Erratically dreaming of riches Esm� left a game of bridge and flew off to the big restaurant.

From The Oyster by Peer

Erratically he waltzed across the floor, to crumple in a heap where Quirl and the girl were sitting.

From In the Orbit of Saturn by Starzl, Roman Frederick

Related Words

• carelessly