Earnest Definition
Gravity; serious purpose; earnestness.
Seriousness; reality; actuality (as opposed to jesting or feigned appearance); fixed determination; eagerness; intentness.
A male given name, an occasional spelling variant of Ernest.
Other Word Forms of Earnest
Noun
Adjective
Idioms, Phrasal Verbs Related to Earnest
Origin of Earnest
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From Middle English ernest, eornest, from Old English eornest, eornost, eornust (“earnestness, zeal, seriousness, battle”), from Proto-Germanic *ernustuz (“earnest, strength, solidity, struggle, fight”), a derivative of Proto-Germanic *arniz (“efficient, capable, diligent, sure”), from Proto-Indo-European *er- (“to cause to move, arouse, increase”). Cognate with West Frisian earnst (“earnest, seriousness”), Dutch ernst (“seriousness, gravity, earnest”), German Ernst (“seriousness, earnestness, zeal, vigour”), Icelandic ern (“brisk, vigorous”), Gothic [script?] (arniba, “secure, certain, sure”).
From Wiktionary
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From Middle English eornest, from Old English eornoste (“earnest, zealous, serious”), from eornost ("earnest", the noun; see above). Cognate with North Frisian ernste (“earnest”), Middle Low German ernest, ernst (“serious, earnest”), German ernst (“serious, earnest”).
From Wiktionary
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Middle English ernest variant of ernes alteration of Old French erres pl. of erre pledge from Latin arra alteration of arrabō from Greek arrabōn earnest-money of Canaanite origin ʕrb in Semitic roots
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
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Middle English ernest from Old English eornoste er-1 in Indo-European roots
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
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Of uncertain origin; apparently related to erres. Compare also arles.
From Wiktionary
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