# Ernest

> English word · Proper noun · IPA /ˈɜː(ɹ)nɪst/ · frequency rank #10,846

## Definitions
1. A male given name from the Germanic languages; popular in the 19th century.
2. A surname.

## Etymology
Borrowed in the 18th century from Ernst, a medieval royal name in Germany, from Old High German ernust (“vigor, strife”), only remotely related to modern German ernst or English earnest.

## Easily confused with
- **Ernst** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ernest-vs-ernst)
- **erect** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/erect-vs-ernest)
- **eldest** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/eldest-vs-ernest)
- **earnest** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/earnest-vs-ernest)

## Common misspellings (9)
`enrest`, `erenst`, `ernesst`, `ernestt`, `ernets`, `ernnest`, `ernset`, `errnest`, `renest`

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