earnest、serious、grave、severe、solemn与sober均有“严肃的”之意。
earnest : 指严肃、认真，含诚恳和热情意味。
- He was a very earnest young man.
他是个非常认真的年轻人。 - Despite her earnest efforts, she could not find a job.
尽管她已尽心竭力，但是仍然找不到工作。
serious : 指具有关键、严肃或严重意义的事情。
- Please don't laugh - I'm being serious.
请不要笑——我是认真的。 - He was wearing a very serious expression and I knew something was wrong.
他一脸严肃，我就知道出问题了。
grave : 侧重严肃和尊严，需要认真思考，含令人担忧意味。
- a grave situation
严峻的形势 - He looked very grave as he entered the room.
他进屋时表情非常严肃。
severe : 指面孔的严肃，法律的严厉，伤病的严重。着重严厉性，无丝毫温情。
- The headteacher spoke in a severe voice.
校长说话的口吻很严厉。 - The president is currently facing severe criticism.
总统目前正遭到严厉的批评。
solemn : 指人表情或场景气氛严肃，侧重威严名印象深刻。
- a solemn face/voice
严肃的脸／声音 - solemn music
严肃音乐 - Everyone looked very solemn.
大家看上去都很严肃。
sober : 通常以稳重、严肃或认真周到的性格或举止为特征，没有表现出过分或极端的幻想、情感、偏见、恐惧等，强调对情绪或激情的控制或抑制。
- 一个严肃审慎的人
a sedate, sober man - 不加渲染的事实真相
the sober truth - 葬礼是一个严肃的仪式。
A funeral service is a sober occasion.
（拓展学习：小词详解 | sober）
