"Diligent" is the common, formal word you need when you want to describe someone who's earnest, steady, and caring as they work.

Talk about diligent people and their diligent work, practice, creations, research and so on.

You can also say that someone is diligent in some task, or diligent in doing something.

To use the noun, "diligence," talk about someone's diligence; or about people doing something with diligence or accomplishing something through diligence; or about people noticing, appreciating, or praising someone's diligence. Here's Gabriel García Márquez: "Amaranta looked after him with a loving diligence."

You'll often hear people talking about "doing their due diligence." That phrase has a specific legal meaning that's gotten watered down in general conversation. I admit that its alliteration makes it compelling. Still, because it's such an overused phrase, I recommend picking a more original or more specific phrase, unless you really are using it in its legal sense. Here's an example from Zillow: "When buying a house, due diligence is the process of researching a property before finalizing a real estate transaction to make sure the property meets your expectations."

"A diligent researcher and an engaging writer, [Sarah Weinman] makes effective use of court testimony, newspaper accounts and, where possible, her own interviews."
  — Barbara Spindel, Wall Street Journal, 2 January 2026

"Scott Brando, a diligent monitor and debunker of phony UFO videos that regularly go viral online, is always playing whack-a-mole."
  — Keith Kloor, Scientific American, 27 June 2023

has this page helped you understand "diligent"?

Awesome, I'm glad it helped!

Thanks for letting me know!
If you have any questions about this term, please message me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.

study it:

Explain the meaning of "diligent" without saying "earnest" or "attentive."

try it out:

Check out this example, from an interview with the cookbook writer Caroline Chambers:

"Ina Garten is my biggest inspiration — I love everything she does. I love her attitude. I love her recipes. I love how diligent she is in testing her recipes."

With Ina Garten in mind as an example, talk about someone who inspires or impresses you with their diligence.

If you like, use this space to write. (To save your work, copy and paste it into an email or a document.)

before you review, play:

Try to spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—first, let your working memory empty out.

Our game this month is "Alliterate a Little; It'll Lift It."

I'll give you a phrase that doesn't alliterate, and you'll make it alliterate by changing one or both words—while preserving, as best you can, the meaning of the original. 

For example: A car that demands too much fuel is a "gas guzzler." But what alliterative term could you invent for a dishwasher that demands too much detergent? 

You could call it a "soap slurper," or a "detergent devourer."

Try this one today...

That wild anger you might feel toward other drivers is "road rage." But what alliterative term could you invent for "inner peace"?

To see one possible answer, scroll all the way down.

review this word:

1. The opposite of DILIGENT could be

A. TOIL-WORN: worn out from hard work.
B. WORK-SHY: lazy and unwilling to work much.
C. BUSH-LEAGUE: not famous, not skilled, not excellent.

2. In her autobiography, Michelle Obama refers to a beloved garden as "a symbol of diligence," a place where she and its other caretakers _____.

A. grew cantaloupes, cucumbers, broccoli, blueberries, kale, and more
B. made errors, learned from them, and carried on working through every season
C. relaxed, watching bees circle the flowers as they dreamed big about how to improve children's nutrition

Answers to the review questions: 1. B 2. B From the game: Any alliterative label you came up with is great! Mine is "spiritual serenity."

a final word:

I hope you're enjoying Make Your Point. It's made with love. I'm Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words. From my blog: On vocabulary...       36 ways to study words.       Why we forget words, & how to remember them.       How to use sophisticated words without being awkward. On writing...       How to improve any sentence.       How to motivate our kids to write.       How to stop procrastinating and start writing.       How to bulk up your writing when you have to meet a word count. From my heart: a profound thanks to the generous patrons, donors, and sponsors that make it possible for me to write these emails. If you'd like to be a patron or a donor, please click here. If you'd like to be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com. A disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes.