diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 340d24a..4a3dbb9 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -6,6 +6,9 @@
   if a file that called `quibble()` is part of a circular `require()`, it now
   gets the partially loaded module, as it would without quibble, instead of
   a second copy
+* Importing a module that doesn't exist (and isn't mocked) now fails with
+  Node's `ERR_MODULE_NOT_FOUND` instead of `ENOENT`
+  [#100](https://github.com/testdouble/quibble/issues/100)
 
 # 0.12.1
 
diff --git a/lib/loader-helpers.js b/lib/loader-helpers.js
index e24d42c..317c22d 100644
--- a/lib/loader-helpers.js
+++ b/lib/loader-helpers.js
@@ -4,7 +4,8 @@
 // module-format dance.
 //
 // Only planResolve/nextResolveContext/finishResolve/recoverResolve/
-// stubbedLoadResult and stripQueryAndHash are used outside this file;
+// forgetUnresolvedError/stubbedLoadResult and stripQueryAndHash are used
+// outside this file;
 // everything else here is a private helper for them.
 
 /**
@@ -60,6 +61,13 @@ ${
 `
 }
 
+// The `ERR_MODULE_NOT_FOUND` that `nextResolve` threw for each URL that
+// recoverResolve() handed back in its place, so that load() can rethrow it
+// if nothing ends up mocking that URL. Keyed without the query: on Node 26+,
+// `--loader=quibble` runs alongside the registerHooks() hooks, which re-tag
+// the URL with their own generation and strip it before calling nextLoad
+const unresolvedErrors = new Map()
+
 function stripQueryAndHash (url) {
   return url.replace(/\?.*/, '').replace(/#.*/, '')
 }
@@ -205,18 +213,33 @@ function finishResolve (state, plan, result, normalizeUrl = url => url) {
  */
 function recoverResolve (plan, error) {
   if (plan.kind === 'quibble' && error.code === 'ERR_MODULE_NOT_FOUND') {
-    return {
-      url: unresolvedUrl(plan.specifier, plan.parentURL, plan.stubModuleGeneration),
-      shortCircuit: true
+    const url = unresolvedUrl(plan.specifier, plan.parentURL, plan.stubModuleGeneration)
+    const key = stripQueryAndHash(url)
+    // If several files import the same missing module, keep the first one's
+    // error, since Node only loads it once
+    if (!unresolvedErrors.has(key)) {
+      unresolvedErrors.set(key, error)
     }
+    return { url, shortCircuit: true }
   }
 
   throw error
 }
 
 /**
- * The `load` hook's stub/passthrough decision. Returns the stub result, or
- * `undefined` when the driver should call `nextLoad` itself (its return
+ * Called with every URL `nextResolve` resolved: the module exists now, so an
+ * earlier failure to find it no longer applies.
+ *
+ * @param {string} url
+ */
+function forgetUnresolvedError (url) {
+  unresolvedErrors.delete(stripQueryAndHash(url))
+}
+
+/**
+ * The `load` hook's stub/passthrough decision. Returns the stub result,
+ * throws the resolve error for a URL that doesn't exist and isn't mocked, or
+ * returns `undefined` when the driver should call `nextLoad` itself (its return
  * needs an `await` in the async hooks and not in the sync ones, so that part
  * stays in each driver).
  *
@@ -225,6 +248,12 @@ function recoverResolve (plan, error) {
  */
 function stubbedLoadResult (state, url) {
   const mockingInfo = getStubsInfo(state, url)
+  const strippedUrl = stripQueryAndHash(url)
+
+  // Loading it would fail with an `ENOENT` instead, see recoverResolve()
+  if (!mockingInfo && unresolvedErrors.has(strippedUrl)) {
+    throw unresolvedErrors.get(strippedUrl)
+  }
 
   return mockingInfo
     ? {
@@ -240,6 +269,7 @@ module.exports = {
   nextResolveContext,
   finishResolve,
   recoverResolve,
+  forgetUnresolvedError,
   stubbedLoadResult,
   stripQueryAndHash
 }
diff --git a/lib/quibble-sync-hooks.js b/lib/quibble-sync-hooks.js
index 6967036..808c616 100644
--- a/lib/quibble-sync-hooks.js
+++ b/lib/quibble-sync-hooks.js
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ const {
   nextResolveContext,
   finishResolve,
   recoverResolve,
+  forgetUnresolvedError,
   stubbedLoadResult,
   stripQueryAndHash
 } = require('./loader-helpers')
@@ -38,6 +39,7 @@ exports.createSyncHooks = function createSyncHooks (state) {
     context.__quibbleSuppressed = true
     try {
       const result = nextResolve(plan.nextSpecifier, nextResolveContext(plan, context))
+      forgetUnresolvedError(result.url)
       if (plan.kind === 'quibble') {
         // Same off-thread-loader caveat as below: work with untagged URLs
         const url = removeQuibbleQuery(result.url)
diff --git a/lib/quibble.mjs b/lib/quibble.mjs
index 339d8d8..88bec2a 100644
--- a/lib/quibble.mjs
+++ b/lib/quibble.mjs
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ const {
   nextResolveContext,
   finishResolve,
   recoverResolve,
+  forgetUnresolvedError,
   stubbedLoadResult,
   stripQueryAndHash
 } = helpers
@@ -49,6 +50,7 @@ export async function resolve (specifier, context, nextResolve) {
   context.__quibbleSuppressed = true
   try {
     const result = await nextResolve(plan.nextSpecifier, nextResolveContext(plan, context))
+    forgetUnresolvedError(result.url)
     if (plan.kind === 'quibble') {
       importGraph.recordImport(context.parentURL, result.url)
       if (!importGraph.needsQuibbling(result.url)) {
diff --git a/test/esm-fixtures/imports-a-missing-module.mjs b/test/esm-fixtures/imports-a-missing-module.mjs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3131469
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/esm-fixtures/imports-a-missing-module.mjs
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+// Statically imports a module that doesn't exist and that no test mocks, to
+// check that quibble's loader still fails the import the way Node would
+import './this-module-is-imported-but-does-not-exist.mjs'
diff --git a/test/esm-lib/quibble-esm.test.mjs b/test/esm-lib/quibble-esm.test.mjs
index 6aa8987..8a98006 100644
--- a/test/esm-lib/quibble-esm.test.mjs
+++ b/test/esm-lib/quibble-esm.test.mjs
@@ -3,6 +3,9 @@
 import 'fs'
 import quibble from 'quibble'
 import { fileURLToPath, pathToFileURL } from 'url'
+import { mkdtemp, realpath, rm, writeFile } from 'fs/promises'
+import os from 'os'
+import path from 'path'
 
 const __filename = fileURLToPath(import.meta.url)
 
@@ -287,6 +290,42 @@ export default {
     quibble.reset()
 
     assert.deepEqual(quibble.listMockedModules(), [])
+  },
+  'importing a missing module that is not mocked rejects like Node does': async function () {
+    // Under the auto-registered loader, quibble's hooks only see imports
+    // once something is mocked
+    await quibble.esm('../esm-fixtures/a-module.mjs', undefined, 'unrelated')
+
+    await assert.rejects(import('../esm-fixtures/this-module-does-not-exist-and-is-not-mocked.mjs'), {
+      code: 'ERR_MODULE_NOT_FOUND',
+      message: /Cannot find module '.*this-module-does-not-exist-and-is-not-mocked\.mjs' imported from .*quibble-esm\.test\.mjs/
+    })
+    await assert.rejects(import('a-package-that-does-not-exist'), {
+      code: 'ERR_MODULE_NOT_FOUND',
+      message: /Cannot find package 'a-package-that-does-not-exist'/
+    })
+    await assert.rejects(import('../esm-fixtures/imports-a-missing-module.mjs'), {
+      code: 'ERR_MODULE_NOT_FOUND',
+      message: /imported from .*imports-a-missing-module\.mjs/
+    })
+  },
+  'a missing module that is created later can be imported': async function () {
+    await quibble.esm('../esm-fixtures/a-module.mjs', undefined, 'unrelated')
+    // The real path, since Node resolves symlinks (macOS's tmpdir is one)
+    const dir = await realpath(await mkdtemp(path.join(os.tmpdir(), 'quibble-')))
+    const file = path.join(dir, 'created-later.mjs')
+
+    try {
+      await assert.rejects(import(pathToFileURL(file).href), { code: 'ERR_MODULE_NOT_FOUND' })
+      await writeFile(file, "export default 'created later'")
+      // A new mock gives it a new URL, so Node doesn't hand back the failed import
+      await quibble.esm('../esm-fixtures/a-module.mjs', undefined, 'unrelated again')
+
+      const { default: result } = await import(pathToFileURL(file).href)
+      assert.equal(result, 'created later')
+    } finally {
+      await rm(dir, { recursive: true, force: true })
+    }
   }
 }