as in earnest
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Recent Examples of serious-minded
Shane Hollander, the serious-minded captain of the Montreal Meteors, and star and playboy Ilya Rozanov of the Boston Bears are played by Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie, respectively.
—
Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 8 Oct. 2025
In this more serious-minded (and Madea-free) movie from Perry, Idris Elba plays Monty, a hard-working father who loses custody of his daughters to his drug-addled wife (Tasha Smith).
—Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 14 Sep. 2025
These ads — presented as teasers, TV spots, and a theatrical trailer that seemed to begin as a very serious-minded tribute to Disney’s great history — served as a delightful introduction to a character that would grow to become one of the studio’s most popular.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 23 May 2025
In 2025, Final Reckoning is exactly the kind of splashy crowd-pleaser that the festival seeks out to both offset and complement its otherwise fairly serious-minded slate of films from all over the world.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 15 May 2025
Rather than strain to add an arthouse veneer (or the climactic reveal of an animating trauma), Coogler offers a true synthesis between serious-minded fiction and B-movie camp.
—Paul A. Thompson, Pitchfork, 22 Apr. 2025
This is funny; Misty, a serious-minded statistician, can’t admit to frivolity.
—Alexandra Schwartz, The New Yorker, 17 Mar. 2025
However, the deeper malaise will take some serious-minded action.
—Tim Ellis, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2025
The banter between Hedges and Scherzer lightened a serious-minded Rangers’ clubhouse.
—Ken Rosenthal, The Athletic, 25 Feb. 2025
Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 8 Oct. 2025
In this more serious-minded (and Madea-free) movie from Perry, Idris Elba plays Monty, a hard-working father who loses custody of his daughters to his drug-addled wife (Tasha Smith).
—Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 14 Sep. 2025
These ads — presented as teasers, TV spots, and a theatrical trailer that seemed to begin as a very serious-minded tribute to Disney’s great history — served as a delightful introduction to a character that would grow to become one of the studio’s most popular.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 23 May 2025
In 2025, Final Reckoning is exactly the kind of splashy crowd-pleaser that the festival seeks out to both offset and complement its otherwise fairly serious-minded slate of films from all over the world.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 15 May 2025
Rather than strain to add an arthouse veneer (or the climactic reveal of an animating trauma), Coogler offers a true synthesis between serious-minded fiction and B-movie camp.
—Paul A. Thompson, Pitchfork, 22 Apr. 2025
This is funny; Misty, a serious-minded statistician, can’t admit to frivolity.
—Alexandra Schwartz, The New Yorker, 17 Mar. 2025
However, the deeper malaise will take some serious-minded action.
—Tim Ellis, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2025
The banter between Hedges and Scherzer lightened a serious-minded Rangers’ clubhouse.
—Ken Rosenthal, The Athletic, 25 Feb. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for serious-minded
Adjective
-
The campaign, whihc includes TV commercials aired during football games and billboards in Times Square and other metro areas, starts in earnest Monday.—
Brian Steinberg,
Variety,
27 Oct. 2025
-
His idea was equal parts earnest and diabolical.—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
25 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Rule out any more serious conditions.—
RikkiLynn Shields Hannigan,
Health,
25 Oct. 2025
-
Springsteen has been open over the years about navigating depression, which began to get serious during his early 30s.—
Jordana Comiter,
PEOPLE,
25 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
In true Tiffany Haddish fashion, there’s plenty of humor, but this time, viewers also get to see a more introspective side of the star.—
Elizabeth Ayoola,
Essence,
24 Oct. 2025
-
Cooper’s deeply introspective film is a quiet beauty that understands and has compassion for how creativity and depression so often can be inexorably linked and produce such iconic works.—
Randy Myers,
Mercury News,
23 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Nuno’s sombre facial expression did little to mask his dread over the club’s plight.—
Roshane Thomas,
New York Times,
25 Oct. 2025
-
Sixty-two years after that somber swearing-in, the central figures who were on board Air Force One have passed away, among them Johnson, his wife, Lady Bird, Jackie Kennedy and Hughes.—
Susan Page,
USA Today,
25 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
The monarch herself eventually selected the winner, an elegant and solemn portrait that was entitled Equanimity and eventually featured on the cover of Time magazine.—
Meredith Kile,
PEOPLE,
27 Oct. 2025
-
Each day brings more permanent residents, arriving in black hearses trailing solemn convoys of hazard-flashing cars to a place still served by generations of locals who cut granite memorials or pour sympathetic whiskeys.—
Chris Kenning,
USA Today,
25 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
This transit can often inspire big visions and philosophical conversations, where people can rediscover their voice and, more importantly, reconnect with their truth.—
Valerie Mesa,
PEOPLE,
28 Oct. 2025
-
His most ambitious series to date, Pluribus can be seen as a corrective of sorts—a grand, artful, mind-bendingly philosophical, darkly funny, sometimes heartbreaking, but consistently humane vindication of our fractious species.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
27 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Over the centuries, Muslim traders built mosques and schools in sedate Tamale, which was more inland and distant from the direct links of the transatlantic slave and colonial trade.—
Edna Bonhomme,
Artforum,
1 Oct. 2025
-
Smith, who is blessed with a muscular singing voice and is an absolute beast on the guitar, brought a party atmosphere to the often-quite-sedate Garden Stage area.—
Jim Harrington,
Mercury News,
28 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Serious-minded.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/serious-minded. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
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