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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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
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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.
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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.
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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.
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Executives who now just happen to be going 1-on-1 for a prize both covet?
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The Pacers, according to a source, have coveted Oladipo for years and are intrigued by the potential of Sabonis.
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The position lasts for one year and it's highly coveted, with only 12 drivers a year and thousands of applicants.
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Thanks to some seriously cool new scientific advances in the world of beauty, dermatologists are able to do more with fillers than ever before. Coveting fuller lips?
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Does Wisconsin have the deep reserves of digital-age systems engineers who are coveted in the new manufacturing economy – but said to be in short supply in southeastern Wisconsin and much of the Midwest?
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
Synonym Discussion of covet
COVET Defined for English Language Learners
covet
playDefinition of covet for English Language Learners
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: to want (something that you do not have) very much
COVET Defined for Kids
covet
playDefinition of covet for Students
coveted
;coveting
: to wish for greatly or with envy I admit I covet success. It's wrong to covet a friend's happiness.
Learn More about covet
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See words that rhyme with covet Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for covet Spanish Central: Translation of covet Nglish: Translation of covet for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of covet for Arabic speakers
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