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Earnest   /ˈərnɪst/   Listen
adjective
Earnest  adj.  
1.
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. "An earnest advocate to plead for him."
2.
Intent; fixed closely; as, earnest attention.
3.
Serious; important. (Obs.) "They whom earnest lets do often hinder."
Synonyms: Eager; warm; zealous; ardent; animated; importunate; fervent; sincere; serious; hearty; urgent. See Eager.


noun
Earnest  n.  Seriousness; reality; fixed determination; eagerness; intentness. "Take heed that this jest do not one day turn to earnest." "And given in earnest what I begged in jest."
In earnest, serious; seriously; not in jest; earnestly.


Earnest  n.  
1.
Something given, or a part paid beforehand, as a pledge; pledge; handsel; a token of what is to come. "Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts." "And from his coffers Received the golden earnest of our death."
2.
(Law) Something of value given by the buyer to the seller, by way of token or pledge, to bind the bargain and prove the sale.
Earnest money (Law), money paid as earnest, to bind a bargain or to ratify and prove a sale.
Synonyms: Earnest, Pledge. These words are here compared as used in their figurative sense. Earnest is not so strong as pledge. An earnest, like first fruits, gives assurance, or at least a high probability, that more is coming of the same kind; a pledge, like money deposited, affords security and ground of reliance for the future. Washington gave earnest of his talent as commander by saving his troops after Braddock's defeat; his fortitude and that of his soldiers during the winter at Valley Forge might rightly be considered a pledge of their ultimate triumph.


verb
Earnest  v. t.  To use in earnest. (R.) "To earnest them (our arms) with men."





Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48


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"Earnest" Quotes from Famous Books



... the long journey over the mountains she had been gay and bright, while now, when they were about to part, perhaps never to meet again, she showed him the deeper and more earnest side of her character. It checked his boldness as nothing else had done. Suddenly there came to him the real meaning of a woman's love when she bestows it without reservation. Silenced by the thought ...
— The Spirit of the Border - A Romance of the Early Settlers in the Ohio Valley • Zane Grey
... relentless Fiddle harmonics on the sensual strings Heart to keep guard and bury the bones you tossed him Holding to the refusal, for the sake of consistency I don't count them against women (moods) I never knew till this morning the force of No in earnest I wanted a hero I'm in love with everything she wishes! I've got the habit If he had valued you half a grain less, he might have won you Infatuated men argue likewise, and scandal does not move them It is the devil's masterstroke to get us to accuse ...
— Quotations from the Works of George Meredith • David Widger
... and prefer the meanest handicraft. You have no right to be preaching anything doubtful. You are aware what my creed is. I profess no belief in God, and no belief in what hangs upon it. Try and name now, any earnest conviction you possess, and see whether you have a single one which ...
— The Autobiography of Mark Rutherford • Mark Rutherford
... her. 'Tis a thing I regret: 'twas a kiss so lacking in earnest protraction—so without warmth and vigor. 'Twas the merest brushing of her cheek. I wish I had kissed her, like a man, in the fulness of desire I felt; but I was bound, in the last light of that day, to John Cather, ...
— The Cruise of the Shining Light • Norman Duncan
... I think a very good suggestion—for me to go to Pensham to stay a week after Christmas, and then go in for.... What do you call it?... the Self-denying Ordinance in earnest afterwards. You ...
— When Ghost Meets Ghost • William Frend De Morgan


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