jealous

adjective jeal·ous \ ˈje-ləs \

|Updated on: 13 Jul 2018

Examples: jealous in a Sentence

Editor's Note: zealous vs. jealous

Definition of jealous

1 : hostile toward a rival or one believed to enjoy an advantage : envious

His success made his old friends jealous.

They were jealous of his success.

2 a : intolerant of rivalry or unfaithfulness

jealous of the slightest interference in household management
—Havelock Ellis

b : disposed to suspect rivalry or unfaithfulness

a jealous husband

3 : vigilant in guarding a possession

new colonies were jealous of their new independence
—Scott Buchanan

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jealously

adverb

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jealousness

noun

See jealous defined for English-language learners

See jealous defined for kids

Examples of jealous in a Sentence

His success has made some of his old friends jealous.
She became very jealous whenever he talked to other women.
He was in a jealous rage.

Recent Examples of jealous from the Web

In the venue’s kitchen before the ceremony, the frantic gang has to deal with a dead minister, an A.W.O.L. chef, killer guard dogs, a jealous husband, a horny couple, and much more.

— josh wolk, New York Times, "‘Cheers’ Said Goodbye 25 Years Ago: Raise a Toast With These 9 Essential Episodes," 18 May 2018
Prosecutors argued that Ortega was jealous of Marina Krim's life and lashed out in the worst way possible - at her children.

— crimesider staff, CBS News, ""Killer nanny" Yoselyn Ortega sentenced to life in prison in slayings of kids in her care," 14 May 2018
But other reasons included making others jealous and making cheating partners regret their infidelities.

— michael weigold, Philly.com, "Selfie psychology: Would you risk your life for a photo?," 9 May 2018
If Germany wins, Erdogan can simply play the victim card and claim that, as usual, Turkey is being treated unfairly by jealous and hostile European powers.

— patrick keddie, The New Republic, "Understanding Authoritarianism Through Soccer," 7 May 2018
Research shows that social media may well be making many of us unhappy, jealous and -- paradoxically - antisocial.

— chicagotribune.com, "I was wrong. Too much tech is ruining lives.," 18 Apr. 2018
This gaudy accomplishment makes me jealous and sick to my stomach.

— kevin sampsell, Longreads, "Unpacking Forty Years of Fandom For a Losing Team," 3 Feb. 2018
The tragedy of The Handmaid’s Tale season 2 grows out of one simple fact: Serena is jealous of June’s pregnancy.

— refinery29.com, "Handmaid’s Tale," 20 June 2018
More than any other species of athlete, golfers are jealous of their records.

— marcus hayes, Philly.com, "Curtis Strange embraces the idea of Brooks Koepka joining his U.S. Open club," 18 June 2018

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

zealous vs. jealous

Zealous and jealous share not just a rhyme, but an etymology. Both words ultimately come from the Latin zelus “jealousy,” and in the past their meanings were somewhat closer to each other than they are today. In the 16th and 17th centuries, zealous occasionally was used in biblical writing to refer to a quality of apprehensiveness or jealousy of another. By the 18th century, however, it had completely diverged in meaning from jealous, signifying “warmly engaged or ardent on behalf of someone or something.” Today, zealous often carries a connotation of excessive feeling: it typically means “fiercely partisan” or “uncompromisingly enthusiastic.”