earnest
UK /ˈɜː.nɪst/ · US /ˈɝ.nɪst/ noun, verb, adjective, proper noun
Also a form of earn
Forms earnests earnesting earnested earnester earnestest
- noun Gravity; serious purpose; earnestness.
- noun Seriousness; reality; actuality (as opposed to joking or pretence)
- verb (transitive) To be serious with; use in earnest.
- adjective (said of an action or an utterance) Serious, sincere, ingenuous.
- adjective (with a positive sense) Focused in the pursuit of an objective; honestly eager to obtain or do. “earnest prayers”
- adjective Intent; focused; showing a lot of concentration. “earnest attention”
- adjective (said of a person or a person's character) Possessing or characterised by seriousness. “an earnest disposition”
- adjective Strenuous; diligent. “earnest efforts”
- adjective Serious; weighty; of a serious, weighty, or important nature; important.
- noun A sum of money paid in advance as a deposit; hence, a pledge, a guarantee, an indication of something to come.
- proper noun A male given name from the Germanic languages, of occasional usage, variant of Ernest.
Synonyms
authentic actual bona fide genuine legit legitimate lubish non-fake pukka real sterling true unadulterated uncounterfeited undissembled unfaked unfeigned veritable intensive centered sincere solemn dear devout heartfelt businesslike
Etymology
From Middle English ernest, eornest, from Old English eornest, eornost, eornust (“earnestness, zeal, seriousness, battle”), from Proto-Germanic *ernustuz (“earnest, strength, solidity, struggle, fight”), a derivative of Proto-Germanic *arniz (“efficient, capable, diligent, sure”), from Proto-Indo-European *er- (“to cause to move, arouse, increase”).
Cognate with West Frisian earnst (“earnest, seriousness”), Dutch ernst (“seriousness, gravity, earnest”), German Ernst (“seriousness, earnestness, zeal, vigour”), Icelandic ern (“brisk, vigorous”), Gothic 𐌰𐍂𐌽𐌹𐌱𐌰 (arniba, “secure, certain, sure”).
The adjective is from Middle English eornest, from Old English eornoste (“earnest, zealous, serious”), from the noun. Cognate with North Frisian ernste (“earnest”), Middle Low German ernest, ernst (“serious, earnest”), German ernst (“serious, earnest”).
Uncertain; apparently related to erres. Compare also arles.
From earn + -est.
Webster’s 1913
- noun Seriousness; reality; fixed determination; eagerness; intentness.
- adjective Ardent in the pursuit of an object; eager to obtain or do; zealous with sincerity; with hearty endeavor; heartfelt; fervent; hearty; --used in a good sense; as, earnest prayers.
- adjective Intent; fixed closely; as, earnest attention.
- verb To use in earnest. [R.]
Etymology [AS. eornost, eornest; akin to OHG. ernust, G. ernst; cf. Icel. orrosta battle, perh. akin to Gr. oriri to rise.]
Etymology [Prob. corrupted fr. F. arrhes, L. arra, arrha, arrhabo, Gr. ; or perh. fr. W. ernes, akin to Gael. earlas, perh. fr. L. arra. Cf. Arles, Earles penny.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “earnest”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details