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errand

[er-uhnd]

noun

a short and quick trip to accomplish a specific purpose, as to buy something, deliver a package, or convey a message, often for someone else.

the purpose of such a trip: He finished his errands.

a special mission or function entrusted to a messenger; commission.

Origin:
before 900; Middle English erande, Old English ærende; cognate with Old High German āruntī; compare Old English ār messenger, Gothic airus

Synonyms
1, 2. mission, task, assignment, chore.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To errand

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Errand is always a great word to know.

So is doohickey. Does it mean:

a gadget; dingus; thingumbob.

a fool or simpleton; ninny.

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Example Sentences

If their only errand is to insist on independence, probably they will have leave to return at once to their own capital.

He then domonstrated that this race was a fool's errand for almost all participants.

Even in quiet times, predicting the paths of exchange rates is a fool's errand.

EXPAND

If their only errand is to insist on independence, probably they will have leave to return at once to their own capital.

He then domonstrated that this race was a fool's errand for almost all participants.

Even in quiet times, predicting the paths of exchange rates is a fool's errand.

As individuals model our errand delivering representatives, eco-con jobs boost melioristic moral overall.

For anyone else, trying to forge a peace between these combatants would have been a fool's errand.

Just then a large foam gingerbread head walked by, on his way to some pressing errand.

But three things suggest that it is more than a fool's errand.

While you can theoretically use your fingers to operate the device, this is in reality a fool's errand of the highest order.

The little girl was sent by her mother on an errand early in the afternoon, and she failed to return.

And trying to beat the market was a fool's errand for almost everyone.

But each time as he drove they faded, prompting him to abandon a bloody errand that no longer seemed necessary.

It's a fool's errand to make precise predictions about the future.

And if people are irrational, then trying to guess what their expectations will be tomorrow is certainly a fools errand.

The quest for empirical evidence is a fool's errand.

We can see now that the megapixel race was always going to be a fool's errand.

Pushing for a democracy or pluralism is a fools errand in this part of the world.

Advocating democracy in a single-party, authoritarian state would seem to be a fool's errand.

It might be worthy in and of itself, but avoiding those toes is a fools errand on this particular subject.

Finally put an end to your to-do list with three hours of time-saving errand services.

Looking for ways to warehouse ever more people is a fool's errand that has already bankrupted the planet.

She was killed as she sat alone in a patrol car outside police headquarters while her escort was in the building on an errand.

Bogle contends that the chances of being right over any extended period are so negligible that it's a fool's errand to try.

Chronic pain from a variety of age-related illnesses has turned the smallest errand into an excruciating effort.

At the height of his career he was a mob gofer, an errand boy.

COLLAPSE

Collins

World English Dictionary

errand (ˈɛrənd)

—n
1.	a short trip undertaken to perform a necessary task or commission (esp in the phrase run errands)
2.	the purpose or object of such a trip

[Old English ǣrende; related to ār messenger, Old Norse erendi message, Old High German ārunti, Swedish ärende]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

errand

O.E. ærende "message, mission," from P.Gmc. *ærundjam. Related: Errands.

American Heritage

Idioms & Phrases

errand

see fool's errand; run an errand.