Emily Dickinson Lexicon

errand, n. [OE.] (webplay: done, messenger, send, servant).

1. Goal; quest; destination; [fig.] gaze; glance; visual searching; [word play on "errant"] wandering; straying; roaming.
2. Request; verbal message; attempt to communicate with someone far away; [fig.] petition; supplication; entreaty; [metaphor] poem; composition; written verse.
3. Undertaking; task; duty; obligation; responsibility; mission; journey for a specific purpose.