error

Pluralerrors

Formserrors, erroring, errored

1. 1
   a mistakenouncountable

   A mistake, or something done, said, written or produced wrongly, usually by accident.

   A single error in the form delayed the entire application.

   The report contained several factual errors that had to be corrected.

   UsageYou make or commit an error, as with a mistake; a common phrase is an error of judgment.

   Similarmistake, inaccuracy, slip, blunder, fault

   Note

   What usually marks it is the lack of intent: a deliberate falsehood is normally called a lie, not an error. British tax rules are an exception: they speak of a deliberate error when a false figure is entered on purpose. Source

   Checked 3 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

   • Errors are usually unintentional, but deliberate inaccuracies can also be called errors; HMRC explicitly uses the term for knowingly incorrect statements. gov.uk
2. 2
   computer problemnouncountable

   In computing, a fault or failure that a program or system detects and reports, which may stop the task it was doing.

   The installation halted with a fatal error halfway through.

   Several errors interrupted the overnight backup job.

   UsagePrograms throw, show or return an error; common phrases are an error message and a fatal error.

   Similarfailure, fault, crash

   Note

   In this computing sense the error is an event, not a wrong answer: something goes wrong while a task runs, often stopping it before it has finished. Source

   Checked 3 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

   • This describes runtime errors too broadly: computing also has logic errors, which can produce incorrect results while a program runs successfully. developer.mozilla.org
3. 3
   nouncountable

   The amount by which a measurement or calculation differs from the actual value.

   The experiment's error was reduced by averaging many readings.

   Each instrument introduces a measurement error that scientists must account for.

   UsageCommon in margin of error and measurement error.

   Similardeviation, inaccuracy, discrepancy

   Note

   Statistics strips the word of blame. An error is a quantity here: the gap between what was measured or calculated and what is actually true. Reporting one is not confessing a mistake. It is stating how far a value may sit from reality. Because it is a number, errors can be compared, combined and reduced, for example by averaging many readings. Source

   Checked 3 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

   • Measurement error is a numerical difference between a result and the true value. nist.gov
   • Numerical errors can be compared and combined. nist.gov
   • Averaging many readings can reduce measurement error through reducing random effects. met.reading.ac.uk
4. 4
   being wrongnoununcountable

   The condition or quality of being mistaken or incorrect.

   The committee acknowledged that the decision had been made in error.

   Convinced of his own error, he withdrew the earlier claim.

   UsageMost useful in in error, meaning by mistake: sent in error. Also see the error of one's ways.

   Similarmistake, fault, inaccuracy

   Oppositeaccuracy, correctness

   Note

   Being wrong as a place you can stray into: Latin error meant "wandering about," from errō, "to wander, to err," so the mistaken mind is pictured as off the path. A decision is made in error, and The Inland Printer in 1913 asks, "Am I in error in marking out the s…?" Source

   Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

   • Latin error meant wandering about and was derived from errō, meaning to wander or err. en.wiktionary.org
   • The quotation appeared in The Inland Printer in 1913. The original identifies the questioner as A. B. C., Chicago; it appears in volume 51, page 94. archive.org
5. 5
   baseballnouncountable

   In baseball, a misplay the official scorer charges to a fielder for letting a batter or runner reach or advance a base, or letting a batter keep batting when an out should have been made.

   The official scorer charged the third baseman with an error on the dropped throw.

   Two errors in the seventh inning cost the home team the game.

   UsageA fielder makes or commits an error, or is charged with an error.

   Note

   A baseball error is a judgment entered in the scoring, not just a clumsy moment. Someone decides that a play was made incorrectly and records it against the fielder. Source

   Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

   • An error is an official scoring judgment recorded against a fielder. content.mlb.com
6. 6
   trial (law)noununcountable

   A mistake, or a set of mistakes, in the conduct of a trial that may justify having the judgment reviewed.

   Defense counsel argued that error at trial entitled their client to a new hearing.

   The appeals court found no error sufficient to overturn the conviction.

   UsageUsed in phrases like error at trial, reversible error, and harmless error.

   Note

   The question is never only whether something went wrong. It is whether what went wrong is serious enough to justify reversing or otherwise disturbing the judgment. Source

   Checked 3 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

   • An error alone does not justify disturbing a judgment; its significance must also be considered. cit.uscourts.gov
7. 7
   sinnouncountable or uncountable

   Sin; a moral wrong or transgression.

   The old hymn calls sinners to repent and forsake their error.

   Scripture warns of the error of those who turn from the righteous path.

   Similarsin, wrongdoing, transgression, wickedness

   Oppositevirtue, righteousness

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