envious

adjective

en·​vi·​ous ˈen-vē-əs 

1

: feeling or showing envy

envious of their neighbor's new car

envious looks

2

archaic

a

: showing a desire to emulate : emulous

b

: highly desirable : enviable

enviously adverb

enviousness noun

Usage of Jealous and Envious

Some assert that only envious is correctly used to describe someone who feels or shows a very strong desire for something that belongs to someone else, but in truth both envious and jealous commonly carry this meaning. Jealous alone is used to describe someone who tends to suspect unfaithfulness.

a jealous lover

Synonyms of envious

• jealous

Examples of envious in a Sentence

a family that is envious of their neighbors' big house

Recent Examples on the Web

Based on my conversations with more than 20 people in the community, some view them as good economic opportunities and are envious of those whose grazing lands were selected for lease. —Sanggay Tashi, The Conversation, 11 June 2026

Republicans can be convinced that negative stories about their candidates are media put-ons, and Democrats are a little envious that their voters haven’t adopted the same attitude of ignore, fight, move on, maybe sue. —David Weigel, semafor.com, 3 June 2026

Riley assembles an envious cast. —Angelica Jade Bastién, Vulture, 23 May 2026

For much of the second half, owner Michele Kang’s side had been reduced to envious onlookers as Barcelona, catalysed by Pajor’s opener, proceeded to tease out a rhythm and chemistry their opponents couldn’t feign to match. —Megan Feringa, New York Times, 23 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

envious

adjective

en·​vi·​ous ˈen-vē-əs 

: feeling or showing envy

envious of a neighbor's good luck

an envious look

enviously adverb

enviousness noun