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Fleeting vs Errant - What's the difference?

fleeting | errant | Related terms |

As adjectives the difference between fleeting and errant

is that fleeting is passing quickly while errant is straying from the proper course or standard, or outside established limits.

As a verb fleeting

is present participle of lang=en.

fleeting

English

Adjective

(en adjective)
  • Passing quickly.
  • * 1931 , Martha Kinross, "The Screen — From This Side", The Fortnightly , Volume 130, page 511:
    • Architecture, sculpture, painting are static arts. Even in literature "our flying minds," as George Meredith says, cannot contain protracted description. It is so; for from sequences of words they must assemble all the details in one simultaneous impression. But moments of fleeting beauty too transient to be caught by any means less swift than light itself are registered on the screen.
  • * 2003 , Gabrielle Walker, Snowball Earth: The Story of a Maverick Scientist and His Theory of the Global Catastrophe That Spawned Life As We Know It , Three Rivers Press (2003), ISBN 1400051258, pages 34-35:
    • During the fleeting summer months of his field season, when the outer vestiges of winter melted briefly, there were ponds and pools and lakes of water everywhere.
  • * 2008 , Barbara L. Bellman & Susan Goldstein, Flirting After Fifty: Lessons for Grown-Up Women on How to Find Love Again , iUniverse (2008), ISBN 9780595428281, page 12:
    • For starters, we see examples all the time of some middle-aged men trying to hang onto their own fleeting youth by sporting younger women on their arms.
  • * 2010 , Leslie Ludy, The Lost Art of True Beauty: The Set-Apart Girl's Guide to Feminine Grace , Harvest House Publishers (2010), ISBN 9780736922906, page 5:
    • And I am inspired afresh to pursue the stunning beauty of Christ rather than the fleeting beauty of this world.

    Synonyms

    * ephemeral * See also .

    Verb

    (head)

    • errant

    English

    Alternative forms

    * (l) (obsolete)

    Adjective

    (en adjective)
  • Straying from the proper course or standard, or outside established limits.
  • * Sir Thomas Browne
    • seven planets or errant stars in the lower orbs of heaven
  • Prone to making errors.
  • (proscribed) Utter, complete (negative); arrant.
  • * Ben Jonson
    • would make me an errant fool

    Usage notes

    Sometimes is considered simply an alternative spelling and pronunciation of errant', though many authorities distinguish them, reserving '''errant''' to mean “wandering” and using it ''after'' the noun it modifies, notably is “knight '''errant ”, while using ''arrant'' to mean “utter”, in a negative sense, and ''before'' the noun it modifies, notably in “''arrant knaves”. Etymologically, arrant arose as a variant of errant , but the meanings have long since diverged. Both terms are archaic, primarily used in set phrases (which may be considered ), and are easily confused, and on that basis some authorities suggest against using either.

    Synonyms

    *

    Derived terms

    * (l) * (l)

    References

    * “ arrant/errant”, Common Errors in English Usage, Paul Brians * On Language: Arrant Nonsense, (William Safire), January 22, 2006, (New York Times) * Merriam–Webster’s dictionary of English usage, 1995, “errant, arrant”, pp. 406–407

    Anagrams

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