Errant
/ˈɛr.ənt/noun
Traveling in search of adventure or straying from the proper course.
Did you know?*Errant* comes from Latin *errare*, “to wander, stray, or make a mistake,” the same root behind *error*, so the word has always carried the eerie double meaning of physical wandering and moral failure.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*ers-
“to wander, stray”
Latin
Latin
errare
“to wander, stray, make a mistake”
Late Latin
Latin
errantem
“wandering, straying”
Old French
Old French
errant
“wandering, roaming”
Middle English
English
errant
“wandering in search of adventure; straying from duty or correctness”
Modern English
English
errant
“traveling or behaving in a way that is not controlled or expected”