erronée

Erronée is the feminine form of the French adjective erroné, meaning false, mistaken, or erroneous. It is used to qualify information, conclusions, hypotheses, or results that do not correspond to reality or contain errors. The masculine form is erroné (singular), with plurals erronés (masculine) or erronées (feminine), as in un calcul erroné, des calculs erronés; une information erronée, des informations erronées.

Etymology: the term derives from Latin errare “to wander, to err,” through the Old French development that produced the pair erroné/erroneux, which modern French retains as erroné (masc.) and erronée (fem.). The sense shift from wandering to mistaken or faulty is reflected in contemporary usage.

Usage notes: erronée emphasizes a defect in accuracy rather than a moral judgment. It is commonly employed in forms such as information erronée, hypothèse erronée, conclusion erronée, or estimation erronée. In contrast, faux can imply deception, while incorrect covers general inaccuracy; erronée often suggests an error in reasoning, data, or conclusion rather than intentional falsity.

See also: erreur (noun), erroné/erronée as adjective forms, erronéux (related adjective), information, donnée, hypothèse. Dictionaries such as CNRTL and Le Grand Robert list erroné/erronée and illustrate common collocations.

In summary, erronée is a neutral, precise term used to label inaccuracies in feminine contexts, reflecting a mistaken rather than intentional nature of the error.