earnestness
Americannoun
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seriousness and zeal in intention, purpose, or effort.
Socrates was a man of great moral earnestness, and exemplified in his own life some of the noblest virtues.
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depth and sincerity of feeling.
Speak with conviction and earnestness, and the people watching and listening will believe you.
Etymology
Origin of earnestness
Explanation
Earnestness is a quality of sincere interest, belief, or opinion. The earnestness with which you recite your favorite poem might make your English class stop whispering and really listen. Your favorite history teacher's earnestness can be seen in the serious, intense way he talks about the Civil War or Prohibition. Little kids often approach the world with an earnestness that's reflected in their amazement and wonder at seemingly ordinary things, like fireflies or simple magic tricks. Earnestness comes from the adjective earnest, "showing sincere conviction," which has an Old English root, eornoste, "zealous."
Vocabulary lists containing earnestness
The Devil's Arithmetic
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Dracula
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Lee Surrenders to Grant (1865)
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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.
The rejection of Victorian moral earnestness after World War I made the colorful Disraeli a more appealing character than his contemporaries, especially Gladstone.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026
And it’s that type of refreshing, radical earnestness that inspires a deeper conversation about the film’s many virtues.
From Salon ● Jun. 22, 2026
Colbert often emits sarcasm but in this moment, he let Vuong’s earnestness take the spotlight.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 18, 2026
The stadium-filling singer-songwriter grapples with fame and feelings of loneliness on an album of unrelenting earnestness.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 28, 2026
She would miss Gid and her pinch-faced earnestness, yes, and Hasina too, with her wicked laugh and reckless clowning around.
From "A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini
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.
