erratic
adjective
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Definition of erratic
(Entry 1 of 2)
erratic
nounDefinition of erratic (Entry 2 of 2)
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Other Words from erratic
Adjective
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adjective
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adverb
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noun
Synonyms & Antonyms for erratic
Synonyms: Adjective
aimless, arbitrary, catch-as-catch-can, desultory, haphazard, helter-skelter, hit-or-miss, random, scattered, slapdash, stray
Antonyms: Adjective
methodical (also methodic), nonrandom, orderly, organized, regular, systematic, systematized
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Examples of erratic in a Sentence
Adjective
My sinker has been my most erratic pitch. And when your foundation pitch is lacking, you have to go to other pitches. My sinker has been in and out, but mostly out. — Orel Hershiser, in New York Times, 9 May 1999 In winning his two-month match in Yugoslavia against Boris Spassky, 10 games to five, Bobby Fischer was erratic, which was hardly surprising considering his two-decade layoff, but there were times when he played more brilliantly than anybody could have expected. — Sports Illustrated, 16 Nov. 1992 Over the centuries, in erratic ways, men have constructed a world in which they are relatively free of many kinds of threatening or harmful stimuli … — B. F. Skinner, Beyond Freedom and Dignity, (1971) 1972 so far your effort to land a summer job has been very erratic because of your erratic attendance at practice, you're in danger of being cut from the team
Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective
Banuelos’ mother told authorities her son’s behavior had recently become more erratic, Miller said. — Jennifer Maher, The Mercury News, "California man lights his 73-year-old mom on fire, surrenders after standoff with SWAT team," 20 Aug. 2019 As rainfall becomes more erratic, the water supply becomes less reliable. — Somini Sengupta, BostonGlobe.com, "A quarter of world’s population faces extreme stress as water supplies ebb, study says," 6 Aug. 2019 The annual rains, the farmers said, had become impossibly erratic. — Paul Salopek, National Geographic, "A storyteller chronicles the mass migrations that define our age," 17 July 2019 Caffeine powder can cause your heart rate to rise or become erratic. — Maggie O'neill, Health.com, "Caffeine Powder Overdose Leaves 21-Year-Old Dead—Here's What to Know," 10 July 2019 Her forehand, a weakness all day, became more erratic, and Halep began to pick on it. — Louisa Thomas, The New Yorker, "Wimbledon 2019: The Moment When It Looked Like Coco Gauff Would Never Lose," 8 July 2019 Because of the policy, countless women have lost access to emergency contraception — such as the morning-after pill — and the availability of regular contraception has become erratic, Nyandat said. — Linda Givetash, NBC News, "Trump's foreign aid policies endanger women, experts say," 2 July 2019 With climate change affecting weather systems, the Indian monsoon is becoming more erratic. — Aarefa Johari, Quartz India, "An investigation into how India dismantled its main defence against drought," 1 July 2019 The Mad King then started to become more and more erratic and violent. — Kayleigh Roberts, Marie Claire, "Every Clue That Daenerys Targaryen Was Always Destined to Become the Mad Queen in 'Game of Thrones'," 13 May 2019Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
One of the biggest boulders is now enshrined at the Erratic Rock State Natural Site in McMinnville, a small state park that aims to educate visitors about these odd erratics. — Jamie Hale, OregonLive.com, "Erratic Rock a small reminder of the big floods that shaped Oregon," 6 June 2017 Erratics are also found in the Columbia River Gorge. — Jamie Hale, OregonLive.com, "Erratic Rock a small reminder of the big floods that shaped Oregon," 6 June 2017These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'erratic.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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