earnest

adj.

1. Marked by or showing deep sincerity or seriousness: an earnest gesture of goodwill.
2. Of an important or weighty nature; grave. See synonyms at serious.

idiom:

in earnest

1. With a purposeful or sincere intent: settled down to study in earnest for the examination.
2. Serious; determined: "Both sides are deeply in earnest, with passions that approximate those of civil war" (Conor Cruise O'Brien).

[Middle English ernest, from Old English eornoste.]

earnestly ear'nest·ly adv.
earnestness ear'nest·ness n.

ear·nest² (ûr'nĭst)
n.

1. Money paid in advance as part payment to bind a contract or bargain.
2. A token of something to come; a promise or an assurance.

[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.]

adjective

1. Marked by sober sincerity: businesslike, no-nonsense, serious, sobersided. Idioms: in earnest. See heavy/light, work/play.
2. Full of or marked by dignity and seriousness: grave², sedate, serious, sober, solemn, somber, staid. See attitude/good attitude/bad attitude/neutral attitude, heavy/light.
3. Having great consequence or weight: grave², heavy, momentous, serious, severe, weighty. See important/unimportant.

earnest²

noun

Something given to guarantee the repayment of a loan or the fulfillment of an obligation: guaranty, pawn¹, pledge, security, token, warrant. See transactions.

adj

Definition: serious; very important
Antonyms: flippant, insincere, thoughtless, trivial, unimportant, unserious

adj

Definition: very enthusiastic
Antonyms: flippant, unconcerned, unenthusiastic, unpassionate, unpurposeful, unthoughtful

---

At civil law, something of value given by one party to another to bind a contract, usually a sales agreement. Derived from Roman law and the Napoleonic Code, the earnest serves both as part payment or performance and as a method of predetermining liquidated damages for breach of contract. On breach by buyer, seller retains the earnest, while in seller's breach, buyer is entitled to twice the value of the earnest. Justinian, Institutes, III, 23; Code Napoleon, Art. 1590 (1804); La. Rev. Stat. Art. 2463 (1978).

At common law, earnest is often used to denote a down payment but, unlike a down payment, earnest is by definition forfeited on breach of contract. 255 N.W. 2d 827, 829. The earnest was originally used as a device to render a contract enforceable despite the Statute of Frauds requirement of a writing. 255 N.W. 134, 135. Unlike escrow, in which a neutral third party holds the goods or money pending distribution to a proper party, an earnest is transferred directly to the other contracting party.

An earnest differs from an option to purchase in that the earnest serves to bind the actual contract of sale, while money given for an option results in the buyer acquiring only a right to purchase, without the obligation to do so. 65 So. 2d 185, 189.

IN BRIEF: Serious; not light or joking; sincere.

Link your lofty thoughts to earnest, active effort, and good results will inevitably follow. — Grenville Kleiser, American writer.

Dansk (Danish)
1.
adj. - alvorlig, indtrængende

idioms:

• be in earnest    være éns alvor

2.
n. - forskud, forsmag

Nederlands (Dutch)
ernstig

Français (French)
1.
adj. - sérieux, sincère, consciencieux, ardent, fervent, pressant

idioms:

• in earnest    être sérieux, sans rire, pour de bon, ne pas plaisanter

2.
n. - arrhes, garantie, gage

Deutsch (German)
1.
adj. - ernsthaft

idioms:

• in earnest    es ernst meinen, mit vollem Ernst

2.
n. - (jur) (Unter)pfand, Bürgschaft

Ελληνική (Greek)
adj. - σοβαρός, ένθερμος, γεμάτος ζήλο, διάπυρος, διακαής, ευσυνείδητος, φιλότιμος, ειλικρινής
n. - προκαταβολή, καπάρο, πρόγευση, προκαταβολικό δείγμα (υπεσχημένου)

idioms:

• be in earnest    σοβαρολογώ, δεν αστειεύομαι

Italiano (Italian)
serio

idioms:

• be in earnest    essere ansioso di

Português (Portuguese)
adj. - sério, cuidadoso
n. - sinal (m) em dinheiro (Fin.), penhor (m) (Fin.)

idioms:

• be in earnest    a sério

Русский (Russian)
всерьез, нешуточный, убежденный, задаток, залог

idioms:

• be in earnest    быть серьезным

Español (Spanish)
1.
adj. - serio, grave, intenso

idioms:

• in earnest    sinceramente, ir en serio

2.
n. - signo premonitorio

Svenska (Swedish)
adj. - allvarlig, uppriktig, flitig
n. - allvar

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
1. 认真的, 重要的, 热心的

idioms:

• be in earnest    坚决地, 认真地

2. 认真, 诚挚

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
1.
n. - 認真, 誠摯

2.
adj. - 認真的, 重要的, 熱心的

idioms:

• be in earnest    堅決地, 認真地

한국어 (Korean)
1.
adj. - 진지한 , 진지하게 고려 해야 할

idioms:

• be in earnest    진지하게

2.
n. - 착수금, 보증, 징조

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - まじめな, 真剣な, 熱心な, 重大な
n. - 手付け金, 兆し, まじめ, 本気

idioms:

• be in earnest    まじめに, 本格的に

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(صفه) جاد, غير هازل (الاسم) عربون ( يدفع سلفا)‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮רציני‬
n. - ‮דמי קדימה, עירבון‬

If you are unable to view some languages clearly, click here.

To select your translation preferences click here.