covet

verb cov·et \ ˈkə-vət \

Definition of covet

transitive verb

1 :to wish for earnestly

covet an award

2 :to desire (what belongs to another) inordinately or culpably

The king's brother coveted the throne.

intransitive verb

:to feel inordinate desire for what belongs to another

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covetable

play \ˈkə-və-tə-bəl\ adjective

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coveter

play \ˈkə-və-tər\ noun

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covetingly

play \ˈkə-və-tiŋ-lē\ adverb

See covet defined for English-language learners

See covet defined for kids

Examples of covet in a Sentence

The oldest of the students, she had become a confidante of Fern's and she alone was allowed to call her by her first name. It was not a privilege the others coveted. —Edward P. Jones, The Known World, 2003
The only Commandment I'd breached, besides killing that bird with my air rifle, was that I had coveted Bobby Entrekin's electric train. It blew real smoke. Mine didn't. —Lewis Grizzard, Reader's Digest, January 1992
He had discovered a great law of human action, without knowing it—namely, that in order to make a man or a boy covet a thing, it is only necessary to make the thing difficult to attain. —Mark Twain, Tom Sawyer, 1876
His religion warns against coveting material goods.
I've been coveting that sleek sports car in the showroom for some time now.

Recent Examples of covet from the Web

For many years, executives at Australian carrier Qantas Airways Ltd. have coveted a nonstop offering from Sydney and Melbourne to London.

— justin bachman, Bloomberg.com, "The World’s Longest Flight Is Coming," 24 Aug. 2017
While Elder and Moeller may be under the radar in the conference, each share in returning experience and big-name, coveted recruits.

— adam baum, Cincinnati.com, "GCL South gridiron gang gears up for annual gauntlet," 17 Aug. 2017
Both coaches, Jason Garrett for Dallas and Bruce Arians for Arizona, will covet getting an extra chance to watch their rookies and fringe guys compete.

— barry wilner, The Seattle Times, "Don’t look for Dak, Zeke, Carson or other stars for HOF game," 2 Aug. 2017
The Walkie Talkie has not always been so highly coveted.

— amie tsang, New York Times, "London’s ‘Walkie Talkie,’ a Divisive Skyscraper, Sells for $1.7 Billion," 28 July 2017
Thankfully, because those three were all the Padres had to offer in exchange for the high-upside, highly-unknown teenage prospects General Manager A.J. Prellet covets.

— kevin acee, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Padres season just beginning," 25 July 2017
There are only fifteen spots available on an NBA roster, so for the thousands of college players who wrap up their amateur status each year, that opening — coveted since picking up a basketball as a child — is a slim one.

— matt giles, Longreads, "The Lonely Life of a Pro Basketball Player," 20 July 2017
The second factor is that power, once coveted and hoarded, is cheap and easily available, particularly in an era in which balls are flying off the bat at unprecedented rates.

— jon tayler, SI.com, "J.D. Martinez trade boosts Diamondbacks' playoff contenion, sparks Tigers' remodeling," 18 July 2017
At-Home Beauty Service Those who covet flawless red lips or fierce French tips but lack the skill to pull them off will appreciate GlamSquad, a service that delivers experts in hair, makeup, and manis to your door.

— marielle wakim, Los Angeles Magazine, "Best of LA: 92 of Our Favorite Things to Eat, Do, and Buy Right Now," 14 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'covet.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of covet

Middle English coveiten, from Anglo-French coveiter, from Vulgar Latin *cupidietare, from Latin cupiditat-, cupiditas desire, from cupidus desirous, from cupere to desire

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

covet Synonyms

Synonyms

ache (for), desire, crave, desiderate, die (for), hanker (for or after), hunger (for), itch (for), jones (for) [slang], long (for), lust (for or after), pant (after), pine (for), repine (for), salivate (for), sigh (for), thirst (for), want, wish (for), yearn (for), yen (for)