as in intentness
a mental state free of jesting or trifling
practiced the art of acting with great earnestness
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Recent Examples of earnestness
Listen to him bum-rush a workers’ union meeting and begin describing, with over-enthusiastic earnestness, how dogs get a raw deal.
—
David Fear, Rolling Stone, 17 Oct. 2025
Though the score is anthem-heavy and earnestness is always hovering, there are moments in the show that are transcendent.
—Frank Rizzo, Variety, 17 Oct. 2025
The Halloween special was tailor-made for a series like Rocko’s Modern Life, which traded deftly in a mix of lunacy and oddly poignant earnestness.
—Daniel Dockery, Vulture, 17 Oct. 2025
Advertisement The Chair Company’s hero is the other side of that coin, a disempowered man whose earnestness brings him only embarrassment and whose attempts to find someone to blame for his misery only dig him deeper into it.
—Judy Berman, Time, 9 Oct. 2025
The earnestness and sincerity that characterized so much music from the late ’90s were overtaken by the sneering rage of nu metal.
—Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 30 Sep. 2025
When there is a buck to be made, a rapidly emerging necessity can be met with ardent earnestness.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
The earnestness with which chef-couple Sarah Cooper and Alan Hsu approach their vision makes Sun Moon Studio feel like a collaborative culinary experiment, a team project you’ve been invited to join in on.
—The Bon Appétit Staff, Bon Appetit Magazine, 12 Sep. 2025
His earnestness and enthusiasm were endearing.
—IEEE Spectrum, 1 Sep. 2025
David Fear, Rolling Stone, 17 Oct. 2025
Though the score is anthem-heavy and earnestness is always hovering, there are moments in the show that are transcendent.
—Frank Rizzo, Variety, 17 Oct. 2025
The Halloween special was tailor-made for a series like Rocko’s Modern Life, which traded deftly in a mix of lunacy and oddly poignant earnestness.
—Daniel Dockery, Vulture, 17 Oct. 2025
Advertisement The Chair Company’s hero is the other side of that coin, a disempowered man whose earnestness brings him only embarrassment and whose attempts to find someone to blame for his misery only dig him deeper into it.
—Judy Berman, Time, 9 Oct. 2025
The earnestness and sincerity that characterized so much music from the late ’90s were overtaken by the sneering rage of nu metal.
—Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 30 Sep. 2025
When there is a buck to be made, a rapidly emerging necessity can be met with ardent earnestness.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
The earnestness with which chef-couple Sarah Cooper and Alan Hsu approach their vision makes Sun Moon Studio feel like a collaborative culinary experiment, a team project you’ve been invited to join in on.
—The Bon Appétit Staff, Bon Appetit Magazine, 12 Sep. 2025
His earnestness and enthusiasm were endearing.
—IEEE Spectrum, 1 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for earnestness
Noun
-
Glacier National Park, Montana Winter comes early to Glacier National Park, but the hardwoods that are peppered throughout the park’s evergreen forests put on one last show in September and October before the snow begins to fall in earnest.—
Graham Averill,
Outside,
26 Sep. 2025
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The crackdown may only be starting in earnest.—
Juanita Goebertus,
MSNBC Newsweek,
26 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
The celebrated sculptor, whose angular, gravity-defying figures are icons of modern art, spent his life exploring form, balance, and the spaces in between.—
Abby Montanez,
Robb Report,
22 Oct. 2025
-
Kondo’s version is not necessarily religious, but does certainly come with some of the gravity associated with religion.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
22 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Some critics have interpreted the ending as a glib last-minute twist that threatens to neutralize the story’s potency and dismisses the seriousness of the movie’s premise.—
Shirley Li,
The Atlantic,
22 Oct. 2025
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Industry platforms such as Hong Kong Fashion Fest, initiated and supported by the HKSAR government, should be leveraged not just as celebrations of creativity, but as global stages to showcase our seriousness and leadership in sustainability.—
Sunny Tan,
Sourcing Journal,
22 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Earnestness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/earnestness. Accessed 26 Oct. 2025.
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