ERRATIC

erratic, fickle, mercurial, quicksilver

(adjective) liable to sudden unpredictable change; “erratic behavior”; “fickle weather”; “mercurial twists of temperament”; “a quicksilver character, cool and willful at one moment, utterly fragile the next”

erratic, temperamental

(adjective) likely to perform unpredictably; “erratic winds are the bane of a sailor”; “a temperamental motor; sometimes it would start and sometimes it wouldn’t”; “that beautiful but temperamental instrument the flute”- Osbert Lancaster

erratic, planetary, wandering

(adjective) having no fixed course; “an erratic comet”; “his life followed a wandering course”; “a planetary vagabond”

Source: WordNet® 3.1

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Etymology

Adjective

erratic (comparative more erratic, superlative most erratic)

unsteady, random; prone to unexpected changes; not consistent

Deviating from normal opinions or actions; eccentric; odd.

Antonyms

• consistent

Noun

erratic (plural erratics)

(geology) A rock moved from one location to another, usually by a glacier.

Anything that has erratic characteristics.

Synonyms

• (glaciers): dropstone

Anagrams

• Cartier, cirrate, rice rat

Source: Wiktionary

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Er*rat"ic, a. Etym: [L. erraticus, fr. errare to wander: cf. F. erratique. See Err.]

1. Having no certain course; roving about without a fixed destination; wandering; moving; -- hence, applied to the planets as distinguished from the fixed stars. The earth and each erratic world. Blackmore.

2. Deviating from a wise of the common course in opinion or conduct; eccentric; strange; queer; as, erratic conduct.

3. Irregular; changeable. "Erratic fever." Harvey. Erratic blocks, gravel, etc. (Geol.), masses of stone which have been transported from their original resting places by the agency of water, ice, or other causes.

– Erratic phenomena, the phenomena which relate to transported materials on the earth's surface.

Er*rat"ic, n.

1. One who deviates from common and accepted opinions; one who is eccentric or preserve in his intellectual character.

2. A rogue. [Obs.] Cockeram.

3. (Geol.)

Definition: Any stone or material that has been borne away from its original site by natural agencies; esp., a large block or fragment of rock; a bowlder.

Note: In the plural the term is applied especially to the loose gravel and stones on the earth's surface, including what is called drift.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition

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