# earnest

Pronunciation: say "UR-nist" US /ˈɝ.nɪst/, UK /ˈɜː.nɪst/

## Adjective

1. Serious and sincere in manner or intent, especially of words or actions; free of pretense.
   - Simple: Serious and honest, really meaning what you say or do.
   - _The senator's earnest speech about veterans moved even her critics._
   - _Despite his earnest tone, nobody believed the excuse._
4. Honestly eager to obtain or do something, and focused on pursuing that aim.
   - Simple: Truly eager to get or do something, and fixed on that goal.
   - _After years of renting, they were earnest about buying a home before the baby arrived._
   - _She was earnest in her desire to study medicine, whatever the cost._
5. Showing intense, steady effort or concentration; done with determination and close attention.
   - Simple: Done with a lot of effort and attention, in a serious, determined way.
   - _Despite earnest efforts on both sides, the talks collapsed._
   - _The volunteers kept up an earnest search of the woods until nightfall._

## Noun

2. Seriousness of purpose or manner, as opposed to joking or pretense; used mainly in the phrase 'in earnest'.
   - Simple: Being serious and meaning it, not joking. Used in 'in earnest'.
   - _The drills were over, and this time the alarm was in earnest._
   - _What the two actors staged as a mock duel became a quarrel in earnest backstage._
3. A sum paid in advance as a deposit; hence, a pledge or guarantee, or a sign of what is to come.
   - Simple: Money you pay first as a deposit, or a sign that more of something is coming.
   - _The developer took the zoning vote as an earnest of the city's support for the project._
   - _If the buyers back out without cause, the seller may keep their earnest money._

## Verb

6. To be serious with something, or to use it in earnest rather than in play. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To use something for real, not just for practice or fun.

## Other meanings

- (adjective) Serious and weighty in nature; important.

## Origin

**Meanings 1–2, 4–6** — *er-, a Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to cause to move, arouse, increase," is perhaps where Proto-Germanic got *arniz, meaning "efficient, capable, diligent, sure," and *ernustuz ("earnest, strength, solidity, struggle, fight") was derived from that. It became Old English eornest ("earnestness, zeal, seriousness, battle") and then Middle English ernest. Dutch ernst ("seriousness, gravity") and German Ernst ("seriousness, zeal, vigor") are cognates. The adjective was formed from the noun as Old English eornoste ("earnest, zealous, serious"), later Middle English eornest. Compare German ernst ("serious, earnest").
**Meaning 3** — Origin uncertain. It seems to be connected with Old French erres and Scots arles, both meaning money paid to seal a bargain.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/earnest (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).