earnest
/ˈɜːnɪst/noun
A serious and sincere state, as opposed to joking or pretending.
Example sentences
- “At first we thought he was teasing, but he spoke in earnest.”
- “The negotiations finally began in earnest after weeks of delay.”
Survives mainly in the phrase 'in earnest', meaning seriously or with real intensity: 'the work began in earnest'. As an adjective it describes sincere, sometimes overly serious people.