errer

Errer is a French verb meaning to wander, roam, or be lost. It can describe physical movement through space as well as a figurative sense of aimlessness or indecision. In contemporary French, errer is intransitive and is not used to mean “to err” in the sense of making a mistake; the common noun for error is erreur, and the verb faire une erreur is used for that idea.

Etymology and cognates: Errer comes from Latin errare, meaning to wander or go astray, and entered Old French with a similar sense. It has cognates in other Romance languages, such as errar in Spanish and errare in Italian. The English verb to err shares the same Latin root but French speakers typically express the idea of making a mistake with tromper or faire une erreur rather than with errer.

Conjugation and usage: Errer is a regular -er verb. In the present tense: j’erre, tu erres, il erre, nous errons, vous errez, ils errent. The past participle is erré, and the passé composé is formed with avoir, for example: j’ai erré dans les rues toute la nuit. The noun errance denotes the act or state of wandering, while errant can describe someone or something that roams. Phrases such as “errer sans but” or “j’errais dans les rues” are common in literary or descriptive writing.

Relation to related terms: Errer is distinct from erreur, the noun for error, and from tromper or faire une erreur, which express fault or mistake. In English-language contexts, the form errer appears mainly in bilingual texts or as a loanword from French rather than as standard English usage.