Difference between earnest and asseveration
Definitions
adjective
- sincerely earnest
- not distracted by anything unrelated to the goal
- characterized by a firm and humorless belief in the validity of your opinions
noun
- something of value given by one person to another to bind a contract
Examples
We may earnestly believe that they're wrong - whether they're non-Christians, heretics, apostates, agnostics, atheists, or what have you.
My hair was matted and wild -- my limbs soiled with salt ooze; while at sea, I had thrown off those of my garments that encumbered me, and the rain drenched the thin summer-clothing I had retained -- my feet were bare, and the stunted reeds and broken shells made them bleed -- the while, I hurried to and fro, now looking earnestly on some distant rock which, islanded in the sands, bore for a moment a deceptive appearance -- now with flashing eyes reproaching the murderous ocean for its unutterable cruelty.
John Malkovich's clever turn as the trainer Lucien Laurin leavens the earnest material.
Definitions
noun
- a declaration that is made emphatically (as if no supporting evidence were necessary)
Examples
Its essence is an asseveration that the physical constants must have values within extremely narrow limits in order for life to exist.
A favourite and amusing mode of asseveration among the syeds, especially in testifying to an untruth, is "Beh ser e jeddam" (by the head of my grandfather), meaning Mahommed; indeed it is a common adage that the greatest swearers are the greatest liars.
This astonishing asseveration he bases upon the truism that ‘the productiveness, or utility of the soil is a decisive factor in the determination of its value or its rent.’
