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5 results for: earnestness

Dictionary Entries (3 more entries. View all »)
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source
ear·nest1    Audio Help   [ur-nist] Pronunciation Key
–adjective
1.serious in intention, purpose, or effort; sincerely zealous: an earnest worker.
2.showing depth and sincerity of feeling: earnest words; an earnest entreaty.
3.seriously important; demanding or receiving serious attention.
–noun
4.full seriousness, as of intention or purpose: to speak in earnest.
[Origin: bef. 1000; ME erneste, OE eornoste (adj.); ME ernest, OE eornost (n.); c. D, G ernest]

—Related forms
ear·nest·ly, adverb
ear·nest·ness, noun

—Synonyms 1. fervent, intent, purposeful, determined, industrious, ambitious. Earnest, resolute, serious, sincere imply having qualities of depth and firmness. Earnest implies having a purpose and being steadily and soberly eager in pursuing it: an earnest student. Resolute adds a quality of determination: resolute in defending the right. Serious implies having depth and a soberness of attitude that contrasts with gaiety and frivolity; it may include the qualities of both earnestness and resolution: serious and thoughtful. Sincere suggests genuineness, trustworthiness, and absence of superficiality: a sincere interest in music.
—Antonyms 1. frivolous.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

Thesaurus Entries
  Roget's II: The New Thesaurus - Cite This Source
Main Entry:  seriousness
Part of Speech:  noun
Definition:  Sober sincerity.
Synonyms:  sobersidedness
Source:  Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition
by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary.
Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.


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