Meaning & use
earnest
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Meanings
adjectivenot comparable
Showing sincere, serious intention without joking or pretending.
Grammar: No comparative; use very earnest rather than more earnest in careful writing.
Patterns
- an earnest attempt
- earnest discussion
- be earnest about something
She made an earnest attempt to understand his point.
His earnest voice convinced us he meant the apology.
phrasefixed phrase
Seriously, wholeheartedly, or in a fully developed way.
Grammar: Always in earnest after verbs like begin, start, continue, or rain.
Patterns
- begin in earnest
- start in earnest
- continue in earnest
The rain began in earnest after midnight.
Campaigning starts in earnest after the holiday.
Common combinations
- earnest effort
- With earnest effort, she learned to read music.
- earnest discussion
- The class had an earnest discussion about privacy.
- earnest young man
- The earnest young man asked careful questions after the lecture.
- in earnest
- Negotiations resumed in earnest on Tuesday.
Synonyms and how they differ
- sincere
- Sincere emphasizes genuine feeling; earnest adds seriousness of purpose.
- serious
- Serious simply means not joking; earnest suggests honest conviction.
- solemn
- Solemn is grave and formal, sometimes sad; earnest is warmly serious.
- heartfelt
- Heartfelt describes deep feeling shown openly; earnest describes manner and intention.
Opposites
Word family
- earnestly adverb
- in a sincere, serious way
- earnestness noun
- the quality of being serious and sincere
Commonly confused: earnest or Ernest?
earnest vs Ernest
Ernest is a male given name pronounced the same; earnest is the adjective or fixed phrase.
Practice
Which sentence uses the fixed phrase correctly?
Choose one answer.
In earnest means fully or seriously, fitting began. The other choices confuse the phrase with the adjective or the name Ernest.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “earnest”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.