errand
/ˈɛɹənd/noun, verb
errand is spelled E-R-R-A-N-D: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 1.1 times per million words in written English, the 27,150th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, errand means “A mundane mission of no great consequence, concerning household or business affairs (dropping items by, doing paperwork, going to a friend's house…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of errand is errands.
How many letters and syllables are in errand?
| Letters | 6: E-R-R-A-N-D |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.1 times per million words; the 27,150th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is errand?
Errand appears 1.1 times per million words in written English, the 27,150th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce errand?
- /ˈɛɹənd/
Errand has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-errand.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with errand?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as errand.
Spelled with the same letters in another order: darner.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of errand
- errands plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- arrand
- erranding participle, present
- erranded participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does errand mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
archaicA mission or quest.
- 2
A mundane mission of no great consequence, concerning household or business affairs (dropping items by, doing paperwork, going to a friend's house, etc.)
The errands before he could start the project included getting material at the store and getting the tools he had lent his neighbors.
- 3
The purpose of such a journey.
- 4
An oral message trusted to a person for delivery.
verb
- 1
To send someone on an errand.
All the servants were on holiday or erranded out of the house.
- 2
To go on an errand.
She spent an enjoyable afternoon erranding in the city.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Errand in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | course , commission |
| German | Besorgung, Auftrag |
| Portuguese | encargo , recado |
| Spanish | recado, mandado |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does errand come from?
From Middle English erande, erende, from Old English ǣrende, from Proto-West Germanic *ārundī (“message, errand”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).