in earnest
idiom
1
: in an earnest or serious way
The search began in earnest when the police arrived.
After light showers during the day, it began to rain in earnest in the evening.
It's hard to tell if he's making this proposal in earnest.
2
: not fooling : serious and sincere
We thought he was joking at first, but then we realized that he was in earnest.
Examples of in earnest in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Backtracking on record Those assessments started to change in earnest, however, after Vučić secured election as president in 2017.
—
Hanna Begić, The Conversation, 29 Sep. 2025
But once the arrests began in earnest, the group turned its focus to trying to figure out which immigrants had been identified by government lawyers for arrests, leaving less time to meet with people before their hearings.
—Sharon Bernstein, Sacbee.com, 29 Sep. 2025
His real impact on the franchise, however, began in earnest one year later when the Panthers under new general manager Bill Zito created their Goaltending Excellence Department.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 28 Sep. 2025
Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report has proposed a bold new deal that would see the team offload All-Star combo guard Tyler Herro, an inconsistent-if-intriguing young role player, and some trade flotsam to the Portland Trail Blazers in an effort to really begin a roster retool in earnest.
—Alex Kirschenbaum, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for in earnest
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Hanna Begić, The Conversation, 29 Sep. 2025
But once the arrests began in earnest, the group turned its focus to trying to figure out which immigrants had been identified by government lawyers for arrests, leaving less time to meet with people before their hearings.
—Sharon Bernstein, Sacbee.com, 29 Sep. 2025
His real impact on the franchise, however, began in earnest one year later when the Panthers under new general manager Bill Zito created their Goaltending Excellence Department.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 28 Sep. 2025
Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report has proposed a bold new deal that would see the team offload All-Star combo guard Tyler Herro, an inconsistent-if-intriguing young role player, and some trade flotsam to the Portland Trail Blazers in an effort to really begin a roster retool in earnest.
—Alex Kirschenbaum, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for in earnest
Cite this Entry
“In earnest.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/in%20earnest. Accessed 7 Oct. 2025.
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