jealousy

noun

jeal·​ou·​sy ˈje-lə-sē 

plural jealousies

1

: a jealous disposition, attitude, or feeling

a marriage destroyed by jealousy

petty jealousies

2

: zealous vigilance

… cherish their official political freedom with fierce jealousy …

—Paul Blanshard

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Jealousy vs. Envy

Depending on who you ask, jealousy and envy are either exact synonyms, totally different words, or near-synonyms with some degree of semantic overlap and some differences. It is difficult to make the case, based on the evidence of usage that we have, for either of the first two possibilities. Both jealousy and envy are often used to indicate that a person is covetous of something that someone else has, but jealousy carries the particular sense of “zealous vigilance” and tends to be applied more exclusively to feelings of protectiveness regarding one’s own advantages or attachments. In the domain of romance, it is more commonly found than envy. If you were to say “your salt-shaker collection fills me with jealousy,” most people would take it to mean much the same thing as “your salt-shaker collection fills me with envy.” But if someone made a flirtatious comment to your partner, you would likely say that it caused you jealousy, not envy.

Synonyms of jealousy

• resentment
• envy
• hatred

Examples of jealousy in a Sentence

petty jealousies among political rivals

a marriage ruined by infidelity and jealousy

He was driven crazy with jealousy.

He was unable to control his jealousies.

Recent Examples on the Web

Playing boxer Jake LaMotta, Robert De Niro gave all of his mind and body to this portrait of a man destroyed by his anger, his jealousies, his pride, his retrograde notions of manhood. —Devan Coggan, Entertainment Weekly, 15 Mar. 2026

Ferrante’s portrait of these schisms is exquisite, detailing all the jealousies and insecurities that can thrive in a friendship between two bright ambitious women. —Literary Hub, 11 Mar. 2026

Imperfect fleshly reality occupies the stage, the region where bones crack and wounds suppurate, schlumpy humans fall for each other, and jealousy roams murderously free. —Justin Davidson, Vulture, 11 Mar. 2026

See what happens when jealousy, suspicion and deception take over. —Hema Sivanandam, Mercury News, 9 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for jealousy

• prelacy

Kids Definition

jealousy

noun

jeal·​ou·​sy ˈjel-ə-sē 

plural jealousies

: a jealous disposition, attitude, or feeling