different between erratic vs mattoid

English

Alternative forms

• erratick, erraticke, erratique (all obsolete)

Etymology

From Latin erraticus; compare Old French erratique.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /???æt?k/
• Rhymes: -æt?k

Adjective

erratic (comparative more erratic, superlative most erratic)

1. unsteady, random; prone to unexpected changes; not consistent

   Henry has been getting erratic scores on his tests: 40% last week, but 98% this week.

2. Deviating from normal opinions or actions; eccentric; odd.

   erratic conduct

Antonyms

• consistent

Derived terms

• erratical
• erratically
• erraticness

Translations

Noun

erratic (plural erratics)

1. (geology) A rock moved from one location to another, usually by a glacier.
   • 2003, Bill Bryson, A Short History of Nearly Everything, BCA 2003, p. 372:

     The term for a displaced boulder is an erratic, but in the nineteenth century the expression seemed to apply more often to the theories than to the rocks.

2. Anything that has erratic characteristics.

Synonyms

• (glaciers): dropstone

Translations

Anagrams

• Cartier, cartier, cirrate, rice rat

English

Etymology

From Italian matto (“insane”) + -oid (“likeness or resemblance”), from Ancient Greek ????? (eîdos, “form”)

Adjective

mattoid (comparative more mattoid, superlative most mattoid)

1. Displaying erratic behaviour

Noun

mattoid (plural mattoids)

1. A person who displays such behaviour; a person of congenitally abnormal mind bordering on insanity or degeneracy.

References

• OED (online) 2001
• Concise Oxford Dictionary 1964
• mattoid at OneLook Dictionary Search