All 9 Uses of
earnest
in
Washington Square, by Henry James
- He has lately come back to America, with the intention, as he tells Arthur, of beginning life in earnest.†
Chpt 6in earnest = serious; or in a serious manner
- Is he in earnest about Catherine, then?
Chpt 6 *in earnest = serious
- He was, however, by no means so much in earnest as this might seem to indicate; and, indeed, he was more than anything else amused with the whole situation.†
Chpt 7in earnest = serious; or in a serious manner
- "He is looking for a position—most earnestly," said Mrs. Penniman.†
Chpt 8earnestly = sincerely or seriously
- Then as Catherine, who had also risen to her feet again, stood there in her rather angular earnestness, wishing so much and expressing so little, he drew her towards him and kissed her.†
Chpt 11earnestness = sincerity or seriousness
- She kept her pretty eyes, which were illumined by a sort of brilliant modesty, attached to his own countenance, and evidently paid the most earnest attention to each of his words.†
Chpt 14earnest = sincere or serious
- Mrs. Montgomery listened in great earnestness to this splendid financial statement; she had never heard thousands of dollars so familiarly talked about.†
Chpt 14earnestness = sincerity or seriousness
- It was rather incoherent counsel, and from one day to another it contradicted itself; but it was pervaded by an earnest desire that Catherine should do something striking.†
Chpt 15earnest = sincere or serious
- In these matters Morris had an excellent grace, which flung a picturesque interest even over the account of his debut in the commission business—a subject as to which his companion earnestly questioned him.†
Chpt 26earnestly = sincerely or seriously
Definitions:
-
(1)
(earnest) characterized by sincere belief
or:
intensely or excessively serious or determined -
(2)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) meaning too rare to warrant focus:
Earnest can also be used as a name (variant spelling of Ernest), or to signify the seriousness of a pledge made (as when earnest money is included with an offer to purchase a home).