# earnest vs earns

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### earnest
*noun · IPA /ˈɝ.nɪst/ · frequency rank #11,884*
Gravity; serious purpose; earnestness.

### earns
*verb · IPA /ɜːnz/ · frequency rank #13,706*
third-person singular simple present indicative of earn

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/vs/earnest-vs-earns