# To run errands



## ThomasK

Can you tell me how you refer to "running errands" in your language and add a little comment? 

Dutch: *boodschappen doe*n, where boodschap is strictly speaking message, -per, messenger, probably something to be done by someone whose task it is to take away of to go and get. _Ge-bod_ and _ver-bod_ (order and ban) have the same root. 
The root of the English word _*errands*_ is clear, I notice. 
_*Faire des courses*_ seems to imply going, running at least...


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## Circunflejo

Spanish: *hacer recados. *The RAE says that _recado _comes from the verb _recadar _and _recadar _from the Latin verb recapitare (receive, collect). But recado isn't what you collect but what you send… Hacer=make/do.


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## ThomasK

We have that problem too: _*boodschap *_can also be a message, brought by a messenger (bode --- postman, postbode), but probably the idea of task in Dutch has always been there: a message = a message-to-be-brought...


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## apmoy70

In Greek it's *«κάνω θελήματα»* [ˈka.nɔ θeˈli.ma.ta] --> _to do errands_ or *«τρέχω θελήματα»* [ˈtre.xɔ θeˈli.ma.ta] --> _to run errands_

-MoGr neut. noun *«θέλημα»* [θeˈli.ma] (nom. sing.), *«θελήματα»* [θeˈli.ma.ta] (nom. pl.) --> _will, desire, errand_ < Classical 3rd declension deverbative neut. noun *«θέλημα» tʰélēmă* (nom .sing.), *«θελήματος» tʰĕlḗmătŏs* (gen. sing.) --> _will, desire, errand_ < Classical v. *«ἐθέλω» ĕtʰélō* --> _to want, wish_ (PIE *h₁ɡʷʰel- _to wish_ cf ΟCS желѣти (želěti), _to want, wish_) + Classical suffix for neuter nouns *«-μα» -mă*.


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## ThomasK

I suppose Telemachus did not run *θελήματα *though! ;-) _[Just trying to be funny because the new word reminded me of that historic name]_


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## Penyafort

In Catalan, 

*fer encàrrecs *[do/make + _encàrrec _'errand, order' from the verb _encarregar _from V. Latin *_incarricare _'to load a two-wheeled wagon or _carrus_'.​*fer comandes* [do/make + _comanda _'errand, order' from the verb _comandar _from V. Latin *_commandare _​


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## jazyk

There's no lexicalized expression in Portuguese: To run an errand (in Portuguese)


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## Starless74

Italiano: *sbrigare commissioni*/*faccende*.
"_Commissioni_" (etymologically too) usually indicates errands somebody else sends you on;
"_faccende_" means errands you go on for yourself (or even matters you deal with in general, without necessarily having to go somewhere).


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## ThomasK

Starless74 said:


> "_faccende_" means errands you go on for yourself (or even matters you deal with in general, without necessarily having to go somewhere).


 Do I recognize a gerundivum as in _memorandum, agenda, addendum_? I suppose so…


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## Starless74

ThomasK said:


> Do I recognize a gerundivum as in _memorandum, agenda, addendum_?


Correct. From _facienda_.


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## Welsh_Sion

*Welsh:*

Base form for 'errand' - *neges* (n.f.)

*gwneud negesi*
to make/do messages

*mynd ar neges*
to go on messages

*mynd ar berwyl*
to go on a bearing
,
*mynd i neges*
to go to a message

*neges *is a difficult word to translate as it sometimes 'message', 'errand', 'shopping', 'groceries'. It has these possible plural forms: 
*negesau, negeseuau, negesi, negeseuon* which have to matched up with the appropiate noun. Negeseuon can only apply to (computer) messages, whereas *negesau* is 'shopping'.


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## ThomasK

Funny thing, this association _message/ errand_, which we also have in Dutch... 

I cannot find the meaning of "go on a bearing"...


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## ThomasK

When we run errands in Dutch, we _doen boodschappe_n: we do messages literally (which is the etymological meaning as a matter of fact), and I now discover that in some parts of the English-speaking world people _do messages_ too, but i guess it is fairly uncommon. 

What is your expression for running errands, if we then refer to getting the essentials, the necessary things for every-day life. _(In Dutch there is _inkopen doen_ [to buy in, to collect by buying], but then it is more occasional:_ inkopen doe_n for some party we want to throw or something the like, but that is not what I am looking for. You can mention it between brackets though)_

French:_ *faire des courses*, _I think
German: _einkaufen _[to buy in again] or even _*Einkäufe erledigen* _[the verb suggesting this is something to be achieved, to be taken care of, but I am not quite sure as I am not a native speaker!]
My Flemish dialect: _*commissies doen*_ [which I interpret as 'performing (some kind of) missions (that we have been charged with [doing])]


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## Yendred

ThomasK said:


> French:_ *faire des courses*_, I think


Yes indeed, _faire des/les courses_.
I didn't know the expression _run errands_  I'd be glad to know the etymology of it.



ThomasK said:


> if we then refer to getting the essentials, the necessary things for every-day life.


Does the expression _run errands_ have a different meaning from _go shopping_, which would then apply to non-necessary things?


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## ThomasK

_Errands _has to do with a message (boodschap in Dutch): angels were _aerendgast_ or something the like, messages-spirit... See here.

I think running errands (and our _boodschappen doen)_ both refer to the bare necessities. Going shopping/ _gaan shoppen_ in Dutch can be way more expensive (and therefore dangerous ;-)): there is no shopping list, or only a very vague one. People might first do some window-shopping, but then they often succumb to temptation - and that is where the trouble sometimes starts: loss of money, buying unnecessary things, ... 

_(I often wonder whether it is not fit in with some kind of primitive hunting  and gathering tradition. You do not have a field, you just have wide nature and you depend on the offer/ what is available, within reach... But that kind of sensation of not having things under control and therefore be on your guard as for trying to get a worthwhile prey is part of the game... But I'll take this to the __Café__, or no, I invite you to join the discussion I started a long time ago about the kind of metaphors you associate with shopping) _


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## Yendred

ThomasK said:


> do some window-shopping


We have a colorful expression for this in French:
_faire du lèche-vitrine_ (lit. _to do some window-licking_)


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## ThomasK

i suppose it is a calque of the English _window-shopping_, but more informal, or is it rude?


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## Yendred

No not rude at all. Just colloquial.


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## apmoy70

In Greek we _do wills_:
*«Κάνω θελήματα»* [ˈkano̞ θeˈlimata] --> _to run errands_, lit. _to do wills_.

Some etymoloɡy:
-MoGr verb *«κάνω»* [ˈkano̞] --> _to do, make_ < Classical v. *«κάμνω» kắmnō* --> _to exert oneself, labour, toil, build_ (PIE *ḱemh₂- _to exert oneself, get tired_ cf. Skt. शमी (śamī), _labour_, perhaps OI cumal).

-MoGr neuter noun *«θέλημα/θελήματα»* [ˈθe̞lima] (nom. sinɡ.)/[θe̞ˈlimata] (nom. pl.) --> _will(s), errand(s)_ < Classical 3rd declension deverbative neuter noun *«θέλημα/θελήματος» tʰélēmă* (nom. sinɡ.)/*tʰĕlḗmătŏs* (ɡen. sinɡ.) --> _will, desire_ < Classical v. *«ἐθέλω» ĕtʰélō* and *«θέλω» tʰélō*.


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## ThomasK

Like "commission", I think: doing what someone else wants, no. (Just by the way: any traces of _kamno _in other EU languages?)


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## Yendred

ThomasK said:


> Like "commission", I think: doing what someone else wants, no


Yes indeed, in French, like _faire les courses_, we can also say _faire les commissions, _but the latter is a bit dated.


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## ThomasK

Really? But no surprise to me:  in Flemish dialects there are quite of lot of French words. We speak about a car mainly in French: carburateur, ceinture, moteur, etc.


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## Yendred

ThomasK said:


> We speak about a car mainly in French: carburateur, ceinture, moteur, etc.


Really?    That's fun!


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## ThomasK

We should not make this a side thread, but it is almost incredible: ik heb het *pertang *gezegd/ Je l'ai dit *pourtant*. So even an adverb!


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## Yendred

ThomasK said:


> *pertang / pourtant *



This makes me think of Swedish "_restaurang"._


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## apmoy70

ThomasK said:


> Like "commission", I think: doing what someone else wants, no. (Just by the way: any traces of _kamno _in other EU languages?)


Unfortunately neither Beekes nor Pokorny point to a possible cognate in other European languages, only Sanskrit has cognates


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## apmoy70

ThomasK said:


> ...We speak about a car mainly in French: carburateur, ceinture, moteur, etc.


That would prove to be very interesting because in Greek too, car parts are mainly from French: *«Καρμπιρατέρ»* [karbiɾaˈte̞ɾ] (neut. indecl.), *«πορτ μπαγκάζ»* [ˌpo̞rtbaˈɡaz̠] (neut. indecl.) etc.


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## Penyafort

In Catalan, it's *fer *('to do') either *encàrrecs *or *comandes*. 

These days, _comanda _tends to be more specifically used for orders (of goods, food, etc)


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## raamez

I would translate it as قضى مشاوير qaDDa mashāwir in Arabic.
qaDDa: to complete, to finish off 
Mashāwir: pl. of mishwār for walk



ThomasK said:


> We speak about a car mainly in French: carburateur, ceinture, moteur, etc.


In Syria and Lebanon, too. The words get really "butchered" though, especially in Syria.


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## Awwal12

There is no direct counterpart for "to run errands" in Russian, it seems.

 "To run errands for somebody" is typically translated as "быть у кого-то на побегушках" (být' u kogó-to na pobegúshkakh, lit. "to be at somebody (= to be had by somebody) at runnings", markedly dismissive), or "быть у кого-то на посылках" (být' u kogó-to na posýlkakh, lit. "to be at somebody (= to be had by somebody) at sendings", more neutral but generally dated).


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## JNavBar

In Cuba, we use: "hacer (los) mandados", which can be roughly translated  as "to do what is commanded to you [by your physiological needs, I guess ]". This usually means to go to get food and other essentials, but it can also be used when you have to do an admistrative procedure or something not that essential (like changing a tyre to your bike to be able to go to work the next day, for example).


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## ThomasK

I think I often see references to *running *and to *bringing messages or performing tasks* or something the like...


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## Dymn

In European *Spanish*: _hacer recados_

_Recado_ comes from _recadar _("to gather, collect") which is not very used, unlike its cognate _recaudar_ (both come from Latin _recapitare_).


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## merquiades

Yendred said:


> Yes indeed, _faire des/les courses_.
> I didn't know the expression _run errands_  I'd be glad to know the etymology of it.
> 
> 
> Does the expression _run errands_ have a different meaning from _go shopping_, which would then apply to non-necessary things?


"Run errands" means doing something that is necessary but not necessarily fun.  You go to the grocery with a list of things to buy, then the pharmacy, the hardware store, the bank, the post office. It can be tedious and a pain.

"Go shopping" is fun, for clothes, for books, for perfumes, for Christmas things, for bonbons. Some young women enjoy their shopping trips.


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## ThomasK

So yes, you are including the idea of "a list of things to buy". So I guess you would not at all include your visit to the dentist, a car inspection, I guess. I had asked the question at the Nordic languages forum and there someone had included those in the shopping expedition;-). You would not, I guess. I would not, for sure. But that is not a judgment, only an exploration of various uses of "shopping"...


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## Yendred

ThomasK said:


> So I guess you would not at all include your visit to the dentist, a car inspection


Indeed, in French this would not be included in "_faire les courses_".


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## merquiades

ThomasK said:


> So yes, you are including the idea of "a list of things to buy". So I guess you would not at all include your visit to the dentist, a car inspection, I guess. I


I think I could include dentist checkups and car inspections in running errands. It's a list of things you need to do at a giving time. You're moving around. It often includes buying something. You say this expression to people when you are purposely not being specific.
I've got to run a lot of errands today.  See you later.


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## ThomasK

merquiades said:


> It's a list of things you need to do at a giving time. You're moving around. It often includes buying something.
> I've got to run a lot of errands today.  See you later.


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## ThomasK

Go ahead, run your errands! --- As for me, there is a to do list and a "errands list" (?), but I could imagine that *both can get mixed up because some of those to-do's involve running/ moving around...* Could that not be the reason for some kind of confusion?


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## Yendred

Well, in French _faire les courses_, "_course" _indeed means "_run_" (noun), but it was historically any moving you had to do (going out from home).
Nowadays the meaning has evolved a bit. In the Wiktionary definition for "_faire les courses_", there are three important points:
_ To _*buy*_ what's *necessary *for *daily *needs.

1) It consists of buying things (they are not just a visit or a walk)
2) These things are necessary for a living (they are not optional)
3) They are based on daily needs (they are not exceptional)_

In my opinion, there is no special obligation to have a list of things you want to buy. This depends on everyone's habits.

I guess "_run errands_" has kind of the same language evolution.
But nobody answered my question yet: what's the etymology of "_run errands_" and especially "_errands_"? What is the primary meaning?


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## ThomasK

@Yendred: oh dear Madam/Sir, see my reaction on the very day of your question (#3), but I am pasting it here again: 



> _Errands _has to do with a message (boodschap in Dutch): angels were _aerendgast_ or something the like, messages-spirit... See here.


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## Yendred

ThomasK said:


> @Yendred: oh dear Madam/Sir, see my reaction on the very day of your question (#3), but I am pasting it here again:


Oops sorry I missed it! Thank you


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## ThomasK

Yendred said:


> _1) It consists of buying things (they are not just a visit or a walk)
> 2) These things are necessary for a living (they are not optional)
> 3) They are based on daily needs (they are not exceptional)_
> 
> In my opinion, there is no special obligation to have a list of things you want to buy. This depends on everyone's habits.


I'd add: (4) moving around, going somewhere, physically. 

I agree: the list is not part of the definition, but in general we make list when we consider something important, I thought, but not a necessary part of the definition. Quite OK!


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## Yendred

ThomasK said:


> I'd add: (4) moving around, going somewhere, physically.


Well no, nowadays you can perfectly _faire les courses _online on the Internet without going out, and be delivered at your home.
Top 10 des meilleurs sites pour faire ses courses en ligne, pour éviter les déplacements


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## merquiades

In the definition of "errand" there is a word that sums up the essence: mission. You go out on little missions. Going out is a need and not optional. It does not need to be daily and you do not necessarily have to buy anything. It can be singular: you run an errand.

You cannot run errands online. You must really move or it is not an errand.

I think "faire des courses" gives the idea of purchasing something and is often the equivalent of buying groceries.
Buy groceries online.
Getting groceries could be one errand but you need to go out.


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## Demiurg

ThomasK said:


> German: _einkaufen _[to buy in again] or even _*Einkäufe erledigen* _[the verb suggesting this is something to be achieved, to be taken care of, but I am not quite sure as I am not a native speaker!]


More general is "Besorgungen machen" (lit. _to make procurements_), "sorgen" = _to care / to provide_.


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## ThomasK

Really? But not "... erledigen". Just wondering; might there be some variation (Bavaria/ Bayern vs. the North)?


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## Demiurg

ThomasK said:


> Really? But not "... erledigen". Just wondering; might there be some variation (Bavaria/ Bayern vs. the North)?


"Besorgungen" is more general than "Einkäufe" (buying things / shopping) but "Besorgungen erledigen" is also idiomatic.


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## ThomasK

Thanks. But as for "erledigen" vs. "machen"? Could you say that the former is more formal? May I assume that the more formal word makes the job/... look more important? (Register, plus nuance as for meaning)


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## ThomasK

I checked at Nordic languages and got these results, resembling English:



> '[Norwegian] We can say "*gjøre ærend*" or "*ha ærend*" (for example "Jeg har noen ærender i byen i dag"). I associate "*gå/løpe/springe ærend*" mainly with doing errands for others. "*Utrette ærend*" works in Norwegian too, but it is more formal (or even somewhat stilted) than "gjøre/ha ærend".


For a second (or even some minutes) I thought these Nordic people "jumped" while running errangs, but then Google told me that _springe _is just running, not jumping, as in Dutch...

_In the meantime I have discovered - or realized - that my former 2020 self created a thread on this topic here. A Mod can of course merge the threads, but the former did not offer that much information. I apologize for this!_


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## ThomasK

Maybe a final word now, perhaps the essence , from Italian. I have just found this sentence containing _fare la spesa_ in Italian:



> Molte casalinghe oppresse che _fanno la spesa_ per la cena dei loro mariti.
> Lots of oppressed _housewives shopping_ for their husbands' dinner.


Running you might think, but _la spesa_ is something like the expenses, if I understand the etymological explanation well: s-pesa, ex-penses. When going shopping, we are s-pending ;-) money, and often a lot more than we had planned! That might be the naked truth!


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