error 
In my mind lie was guilty of no error, he was charge- 
able wi'th no exaggeration, he was betrayed by his fancy 
into no metaphor, who once said, that all we see about us, 
King, Lords, and Commons, the whole machinery of the 
state all the apparatus of the system, and its varied work- 
ings, end in simply bringing twelve good men into a box. 
Brougham. 
There is but one effective mode of displacing an error, 
and that is to replace it by a conception which, while 
readily adjusting itself to conceptions firmly held on other 
points, is seen to explain the facts more completely. 
G. H. Lewes, Probs. of Life and Mind, Int. I. i. 6. 
When men do not know the truth, they do well to agree 
in common error based upon common feeling ; for thereby 
their energies are fixed in the unity of definite aim, and 
not dissipated to waste in restless and incoherent vaga- 
ries. Mamlslta, Body and Will, p. 219. 
3. An inaccuracy duo to oversight or accident ; 
something different from what was intended, 
especially in speaking, writing, or printing: as, 
a clerical error (which see, below). 
Error*, like straws, upon the surface How : 
He who would search for pearls must dive below. 
Di-yden, All for Love, Prol. 
4. A wrong-doing; a moral fault ; a sin, espe- 
cially one that is not very heinous. 
Who can understand bis errors! cleanse thon me from 
secret faults. 1's. xix. 12. 
If to her share some female error* fall. 
Look on her face, and you'll forget them all. 
Pope, R. of the L., ii. 17. 
If it were thine errnr or thy crime, 
I care no longer. Tennyson, Vision of Sin. Epil. 
5. The difference between the observed or oth- 
erwise determined value of a physical quantity 
and the true value : also called the true error. 
By the error is often meant the error according to some 
possible theory. Tims, in physics, the rule is to make the 
sum of the squares of the errors a minimum that is, that 
theory is adopted according to which the sum of the 
squares of the errors of the observations is represented 
to be less than according to any other theory. The error 
of an. observation is separated into two parts, the acci- 
dental error and the constant error. The accidental error 
is that part of the total error which would entirely disap- 
pear from the mean of an indefinitely large series of ob- 
servations taken under precisely the same circumstances : 
the constant error is that error which would still affect 
such a mean. The In if of error is a law connecting the 
relative magnitudes of errors with their frequency. The 
law is that the logarithm of the frequency is proportional 
to the square of the error. This law holds only for the 
accidental part of the error, and only for certain kinds of 
observations, and to those only when certain observations 
affected by abnormal errors have been struck out. The 
probable error is a magnitude which one half the acci- 
dental errors would in the long run exceed ; this is a well- 
established but unfortunate expression. The mean error 
is the quadratic mean of the errors of observations simi- 
lar to given observations. 
6. In law, a mistake in a judicial determination 
of a court, whether in deciding wrongly on the 
merits or ruling wrongly 011 an incidental point, 
to the prejudice of the rights of a party. It im- 
plies, without imputing corruptness, a deviation from or 
misapprehension of the law, of a nature sufficiently serious 
to entitle the aggrieved party to carry the case to a court of 
review. 
7f. Perplexity; anxiety; concern. 
He . . . thought well in his corage that the! were right 
high men and gretter of astate than he cowde thinke, and 
a-boute his herte com so grete errour that it wete all his 
visage with teeres of his yien. Merlin (E. E. T. S.), ii. 318. 
Assignment of errors, in law, specification of the errors 
suggested or objected to. Clerical error, a mistake in 
writing ; the erroneous writing of one thing for another ; 
a slip of the pen : from all writers having been formerly 
called clerics or clerks. Court of error, court of er- 
rors, a court exercising appellate jurisdiction by means 
of writs of eiTor. The highest judicial court of Connecti- 
cut is called the Supreme Court of Errors, those of Dela- 
ware and New Jersey the Courts of Errors and Appeals. 
Error in fact, a mistake of fact, or ignorance of a fact, 
embraced in a judicial proceeding and affecting its valid- 
ity, as, for example, the granting of judgment against an 
infant as if he were adult. Error Of a clock, the differ- 
ence between the time indicated by a clock and the time 
which the clock is intended to indicate, whether sidereal 
or mean time. Error of collimation. See collimation. 
Joinder In error, in la ii; the taking of issue on the sug- 
gestion of error. writ of error, a process issued by a 
court of review to the inferior court, suggesting that error 
has been committed, and requiring the record to be sent 
up for examination : now generally superseded by appeal. 
= Syn. 2 and 3. Mistake, Bull, etc. See blunder. 
errorist (er'or-ist), . [< error + -ist.] One 
who errs, or who encourages and propagates 
error. [Rare.] 
Especially in the former of these Epistles [Colossians and 
Ephesians] we find that the Apostle Paul censures a class 
of errnrixls who are not separated from the Church, but 
who cherish and inculcate notions evidently Gnostical in 
their character, ft. /'. Fisher, Begin, of Christianity, p. 387. 
ers (ers), n. [< F. crs = Pr. ers = Cat. er = Sp. 
yervo = It. ervo, < L. ervum, the bitter vetch: 
see Ervum.'] A species of vetch, Ticia En-ilia. 
Erse (ers), a. and . [Also Earse ; a corruption 
of Irish.] I. a. Of or belonging to the Celts of 
Ireland and Scotland or their language : as, the 
Erse tongue. 
The native peasantry everywhere sang Erge songs in 
praise of Tyrconnel. Macaitlaii, Hist. Eng., vi. 
erupt 
II n The language of the Gaels or Celts in eructt (e-rukt'), r. t. [= It. crttttarc = Sp. cnic- 
the Highlands of Scotland, as being of Irish tar, < L. eruetare. belch or vomit forth, oast 
origin The Highlanders themselves call it forth, < e, out, + ruclare, belch: see rwsta- 
Gaelte tion.] Same as eructate. Bailey, 1727. 
T Ther has many dialects, and the words used in some eructate (e-rnk'tat), v. * ; pret. and pp. erne- 
islands are not always known in others. tated, ppr. eructating. [< L. eructatiim, pp. of 
Johnson, Jour, to Western Isles, eructare, belch forth : see er*6t.] To belch 
ersh, M. Soeearsli. forth or eject, as wind from the stomach, 
erst (erst), adv. [Early mod. E. (dial.) also ^ t na in times past hath ,-ri^,.,J such huge gobbets of 
yerst; < ME. erst, arst, cer.it, erest, airest, first, o re lion-ell, Letters, I. 1. 27. 
once, formerly, for Jhe first time, < AS. wrest, eruc t a tion (e-ruk-ta'shon), n. [= F. eructation 
adv., first (cf. adj. ceresta, ME. erste, the first), _ p r cnic t a tio = Sp. eriictiicion = Pg. eructa- 
superl. of (er, before, formerly, sooner, in posi- 
tive use soon, early: see ere 1 , early, etc.] 1. 
First ; at first ; at the beginning. 
On of Ector owne brether, that I erst neuenyt, 
And Modernus, the mayn kyng, on the mon set. 
Destruction of Troy (E. E. T. S.), 1. 0792. 
cao = It. eruttazinne, < LL. eructatio(n-) ; < L. 
eructare, belch: see cruet.] 1. A belching of 
wind from the stomach ; a belch. 
Cabbage ('tis confess'd) is greatly accused for lying un- 
digested in the stomach, and provoking eructations. 
/></.'//!, Acetaria. 
2. Once; formerly; long ago. 
Once All was made : not by the hand of Fortune 
(As fond B" 
3. A violent bursting forth or ejection of mat- 
t er from the earth. 
, L Thenmc are hot springs or tor, ,,,,,^,V,i,, BW.*. 
Gentle spirit of sweetest humour, who erst did sit upon erudiatet (e-ro'di-at), r. t. [Irreg. < . L. crudire, 
the easy pen of my beloved Cervantes. pp.eruditus, instruct: see erudite.) lo instruct; 
Sterne, Tristram Shandy, ix. 24. 
3. Before ; till then or now ; hitherto. 
Hony and wex as erst is uowe to make, 
What shal be saide of wyne is tente to take. 
Palladium, Husbondrie (E. E. T. S.), p. IWi. 
Whence look the Soldier's Cheeks dismay'd and pale? 
Erst ever dreadful, know they now to dread ? 
Prior, Ode to the Queen. 
[Archaic in all senses.] 
At erstt. (n) At flrst : for the first time, (h) At length, at 
present: especially with noir(noivat erst). 
In dremes, quod Valerian, nan we be 
L'nto this tyme, brother myn, ywis ; 
But notv at erst in trouthe our dwelling i.s. 
Chaucer, Second Nun's Tale, 1. 204. 
My bonghes with bloosmes that crowned were at flrste . . . 
Are left both bare and barrein now at erst. 
Spenser, Shep. Cal., December. 
Of erst, formerly. 
The enigmas which of erst puzzled the brains of Socrates 
and Plato and Seneca.' Tlie Catholic World, April. 1884. 
educate ; teach. 
The skilful goddess there rrudiates these 
In all she did. Fanshatc. 
erudite (er'8-dit), n. and n. [= F. erudit = Sp. 
Pg. It. eruaito, < L. eriulitus, learned, accom- 
plished, well informed, pp. of erudire, instruct, 
educate, cultivate, lit. free from rudeness, < 
e, out, + nulls, rude: see rwlr.] I. . 1. In- 
structed ; taught ; learned ; deeply read. 
The kinges highnes as a most erudite prince and a most 
faithful! kinge. Sir T. More, Works (trans.), p. 645. 
2. Characterized by erudition. 
Erudite and metaphysical theology. .Jet: Tatflor. 
II. ii. A learned person. 
We have, therefore, had logicians and speculators on the 
one hand, and erudites and specialists on the other. 
L. /'. Ward, Dynam. Soeiol., I. 140. 
eruditely (er'o-dit-li), adr. With erudition; 
learnedly. Bailey, 1727. 
erstt, - [ME. erste, < AS. mresta = OS. erista e ruditeness(er'o-dit-nes),w. [<cnidite + -ncsi<.] 
= OFries. ernsta, arista = OHG. eristo, MHG. T} ie quality of being erudite. Coleridge, 
ei-extf, G. crxt, first: see ernt, adv.] First. erudition (er-o-dish'on), n. [= F. erudition = 
erstwhile (ersttwfl), a<lr. [< a-st + u-liile.~\ 
At one time ; formerly. [( )bsolete or archaic.] 
Those thick and clammy vapors which erxtu'liile ascended 
in such vast measures . . . must at length ohey the laws 
of their nature and gravity. 
Glanvillc, Pre-existeuce of Souls, xiv. 
The beautiful dark tresses, erstirhilr so smoothly braided 
about the small head, . . . were tangled and matted until 
no trace of their former lustre remained. 
Harpers Man., I.XXVI. 227. 
ertH, (' An obsolete form of arfl. 
ert'-t, v. t. An obsolete form of art 3 . 
erthet, An obsolete form of eartli. 
erubescence. erubescency (er-o-bes'ens, -en- 
si), n. [= F. erubescence = Sp. eriibescencid = 
It. erubexcenza, erubescen:ia, < LL. embescentia , 
blushing (for shame), < erubexcen(t-)s, ppr., 
blushing: see erubescent.] A becoming or grow- 
ing red; specifically, redness of the skin or 
other surface ; a blush. 
erubescent (er-o-bes'ent), a. [= F. erubeneent 
= It. erubescente, < L. ernl>esceii(t-)s, ppr. oteru- 
bescere, grow red, redden, esp. for shame, blush, 
< e, out, + rubescere, grow red: see rubeseeiit.] 
Growing red or reddish; specifically, blushing. 
erubescite (er-g-bes'it), . [< L. erttbexcere, 
redden, + -te 2 .] An ore of copper, so called 
Sp. erudicion = Pg. ffntaiqtto = It. erudi;ione, < 
L. eruditio(n-), an instructing, learning, erudi- 
tion^ erudire, instruct: see erudite.] Learn- 
ing; scholarship; knowledge gained by study 
or from books and instruction ; particularly, 
learning in literature, history, antiquities, and 
languages, as distinct from knowledge of the 
mathematical and physical sciences. 
There hath not been . . . any king ... so learned in 
all literature and erudition. 
Bacon, Advancement of Learning, i. 4. 
Fam'd be thy tutor, and thy parts of nature 
Thrice-fam'd beyond, beyond all ervditinn. 
Shalt., T. and C., ii. 3. 
The great writings of St. Thomas Aquinas and his fol- 
lowers, and, in more modern times, the massive and con- 
scientious ertirlitiou of the Benedictines, will always make 
certain periods of the monastic history venerable to the 
scholar. Isfcki/, Europ. Morals, II. 222. 
Those who confound commentatorship with philosophy, 
and mistake erudition for science, may be said to study, 
but not to study the universe. 
./. ;(. Secley, Nat. Religion, p. 53. 
There is a superfluity of erudition in his novels that 
verges upon pedantry, l>eeause it is sometimes paraded 
with an appearance of ostentation, and is introduced in 
season and out of season. Edinburgh Rer. 
= Syn. Leartliiiff, Scliotantitift, Lore, etc. See literature. 
and by miners peacock ore and horse-jlfsii ore, amf by the smoothed ; smooth. 
French cuivre. panache,. It is a snlphid of copper and erugationt (or-ij-ga'shon), n. [dj.crinjatio(n-), 
iron, with a varying proportion of the latter. Also called 
wnca (e-ro'kS), *. [L., a caterpillar, a canker- 
worm also a" sort of colewort : see erute.] 1 . 
< ertlga ,.^ pp . 'enigati'is, clear from wrinkles: 
f e er "i> ( ."[ -3 ^^ of smoothing, or freeing 
fro lkles ' *"' . 
. . L . 
An insect in the larval state ; a caterpillar.- eruginOUS, O. See <,-ruj,in,,. 
2. [ijp.] [NL.] A small genus of cruciferous eruket, . [ME. < L 
plants of the mountains of Europe and central 
, canker-worm.] A 
a. [< L. , 
continent of Europe. " hot., prominent, as if bursting through the cor- 
3. [cap.] [NL.] A genus of univalve mollusks. tical layer or epidermis, as is seen in some tet- 
eruciform (e-ro'si-form), a. [< L. eruca, a cat- raspores of alga?, certain structures in lichens, 
erpillar, + forma, form.] 1. In entom., resem- and many leaf-fungi. 
bling a caterpillar: said of certain larvas, as erunda, erundie (e-run'dil. -di), u. [E. Ind., 
those of the saw-fly. 2. In hot., worm-like: < Skt. erauda.] The castor-oil plant. Iticiium 
shaped like a caterpillar: applied to the spores com m u nix. 
erupt (e-rupf). '. [< L. erni>lus, pp. of eruni- 
pei-e, break out, burst fortli, tr. cause to break 
out, < e, out, + rmnpere, pp. riiptns, break: see 
rupture. Cf. abrupt, c/irni/it, ii-m/iffd.] I. 111- 
tnoix. To burst forth suddenly and violently: 
of certain lichens. Also erut-afoi-m. 
erucivorous (er-o-siv'p-rus), a. [< NL. emcivo- 
rux, < L. eruca, a caterpillar, + vorare, eat, 
devour.] In entom. and oriiith,, feeding on cat- 
erpillars, as the larva? of ichneumon-flies and 
many other Hi/menoptera, and various birds. 
break or belch out ; send forth matter. 
