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Synonyms

earnestly

American  
[ur-nist-lee] / ˈɜr nɪst li /

adverb

  1. with deep and sincere feeling; seriously.

    After earnestly delivering a sermon on helping people in need, the pastor was gratified to see the record number of donations to the shelter.

Etymology

Origin of earnestly

First recorded before 1000; earnest 1 ( def. ) + -ly

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

His minister father loathed rap, yet Jean teasingly and earnestly called himself “the preacher’s son,” filling his verses with biblical language that still shows up in “Quantum Leap.”

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 25, 2026

"We've waited more earnestly than anyone else," added RM.

From BBC • Jan. 13, 2026

It’s a stunning moment, and one of the show’s most memorable scenes, because it earnestly captures the silent yearning that comprises so much of the gay experience, especially for closeted gay men.

From Salon • Jan. 2, 2026

"I have been waiting more earnestly than anyone else," group leader RM wrote in the letter.

From Barron's • Jan. 1, 2026

He asked me again, earnestly, to con it out; and I admitted that the letters were not formed in complete perfection; that it resembled somewhat, Liberty to Slane, with a wriggling trail after the e.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.