earnestness C2+ Topic:Describing People US /ˈɝnəstnəs/ UK /ˈɜːnəstnəs/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 noun sincere and serious conviction or intensity of purpose He pleaded his case with an earnestness that won the jury over. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 noun · sincere and serious... sincerityseriousnessfervorgravityintensityzealconviction ↔ Opposites flippancyfrivolityinsincerity Word family Related forms earnestearnestly Etymology AI details From 'earnest' + the noun-forming suffix '-ness'. 'Earnest' is from Old English 'eornost' ('seriousness, zeal'), from Proto-Germanic '*ernustuz'. eornost Old English View etymology graph -> Topics Describing People Word Formation & Derivatives External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # earnestness **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** noun **IPA (US):** /ˈɝnəstnəs/ **IPA (UK):** /ˈɜːnəstnəs/ ## Meanings 1. sincere and serious conviction or intensity of purpose ## Examples - He pleaded his case with an earnestness that won the jury over. ## Synonyms - sincerity - seriousness - fervor - gravity - intensity - zeal - conviction ## Antonyms - flippancy - frivolity - insincerity ## Related Forms - earnest - earnestly ## Roots and Affixes - Root: eornost ## Etymology From 'earnest' + the noun-forming suffix '-ness'. 'Earnest' is from Old English 'eornost' ('seriousness, zeal'), from Proto-Germanic '*ernustuz'. ## AI Etymology Earnestness is from 'earnest' + the noun-forming suffix '-ness'. 'Earnest' is from Old English 'eornost' ('seriousness, zeal'), from Proto-Germanic '*ernustuz'. The immediate etymological form is Old English eornost. The suffix -ness marks an abstract noun of quality or state, so the English form is shaped by recognizable word formation as well as by its inherited or borrowed base. In present use as a noun, it means "sincere and serious conviction or intensity of purpose", keeping the historical formation close to the word's ordinary semantic work. Related words include earnest and earnestly. ## Topics - Describing People - Word Formation & Derivatives markdown