in earnest

idiom

: 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.

: 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 Ozzfest kicked off in earnest in 1997 and did it in grand fashion. —

Richard Bienstock, Billboard, 17 July 2024 The Republican National Convention begins in earnest Monday. —

David Clarey, Journal Sentinel, 15 July 2024 The two started collaborating in earnest, combining their different perspectives. —

Jordana Cepelewicz, Quanta Magazine, 15 July 2024 Second-quarter earnings season began in earnest last week with some of the largest banks on Wall Street including Citigroup and JPMorgan Chase , in addition to Delta Air Lines and PepsiCo . —

Nick Wells,brian Evans, CNBC, 15 July 2024 See all Example Sentences for in earnest

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'in earnest.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.