earnestly

adverb

ear·​nest·​ly ˈər-nəst-lē 

: in an earnest and serious manner : not lightly, casually, or flippantly

speaking earnestly

asking earnestly for forgiveness

providing the relief that they had earnestly hoped for

She spoke so earnestly, with such emotion in her voice, that Omakayas was always to remember that moment …

—Louise Erdrich

They sing contemporary R&B earnestly, like they borrowed it and want to return it in better condition than when they got it.

—Danyel Smith

Examples of earnestly in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Maybe the only thing scarier than the opening scene of The Happening is Mark Wahlberg attempting to earnestly and fearfully talk to a plant. —Brianna Zigler, Entertainment Weekly, 15 June 2026

And of course there will always be readers who balk at SF, refusing to countenance that our lived reality is saturated with it, and that the time for earnestly realistic state-of-the-nation novels may have passed. —Literary Hub, 11 June 2026

Behind them, Lauren Lloyd, 33, visiting from Nashville, sat earnestly scribbling on her wish tag, which was filled from edge to edge with neat script. —Deborah Vankin, Los Angeles Times, 10 June 2026

With Mboko serving at 3-1, Williams screamed in anguish after missing a shot and then apologized earnestly to her partner. —Charlie Eccleshare, New York Times, 10 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above