serious

adjective
/ˈsɪə̯.ɹi.əs/

Without humor or expression of happiness; grave in manner or disposition.

Example

“It was a surprise to see the captain, who had always seemed so serious, laugh so heartily.”

Other meanings

Important; weighty; not insignificant.
“This is a serious problem. We'll need our best experts.”
Really intending what is said (or planned, etc); in earnest; not jocular or deceiving.
“After all these years, we're finally getting serious attention.”

Related words

hyperserious
jocoserious
overserious
semiserious
seriositude
superserious
ultraserious
ha ha only serious
nonserious
self-serious
seriously
seriousness

Example sentences

“The injuries were serious but not life-threatening.”
Tatoeba · ddnktr · CC0
“Whatever it is, it sounds serious.”
Tatoeba · shekitten · CC0
“The game turned into a serious competition between them.”
Tatoeba · Igider · CC0

Word history

From Latin "sērius" (grave, earnest, serious).

Where this comes from

This definition is adapted from “serious” on Wiktionary, by its contributors; example sentences are from Tatoeba, credited to their authors above, published under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page is published under the same licence.