as in jealousy
a painful awareness of another's possessions or advantages and a desire to have them too
their envy of their neighbor's fancy home threatened to wreck their friendship
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to resent
to have a resentful awareness of and desire for (another's possessions or advantages) or to feel resentment toward (someone) over possessions or advantages
her coworkers envied her chummy relationship with the senior vice president they envied him because he didn't have to work for a living
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of envy
Soo Kim, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Oct. 2025
Her effortlessly dewy glow is the subject of envy and inspiration for fanart and makeup tutorials.
—Brian Bennett, Time, 1 Oct. 2025
Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 30 July 2025
For their 2016 festivities, Reign and Mason celebrated with a theme even Vin Diesel would envy: a car-lover's homage to The Fast and the Furious.
—Jen Juneau, People.com, 29 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for envy
Noun
Reactions from other users came quickly, with many expressing awe and envy.
—Soo Kim, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Oct. 2025
Her effortlessly dewy glow is the subject of envy and inspiration for fanart and makeup tutorials.
—Brian Bennett, Time, 1 Oct. 2025
Verb
Much of the credit goes to the performances by the charismatic Egerton, who displays fierce emotional and physical power, and young Heger, projecting the sort of range that most adult actors would envy.
—Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 30 July 2025
For their 2016 festivities, Reign and Mason celebrated with a theme even Vin Diesel would envy: a car-lover's homage to The Fast and the Furious.
—Jen Juneau, People.com, 29 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for envy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for envy
Noun
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The person could be experiencing jealousy or may even feel loss about their relationship with you now that a baby is on the way, Kelman says.—
Melissa Willets,
Parents,
7 Oct. 2025
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Married Matt and Amber Barnett overcame a little bit of jealousy and a lot of credit card debt to cultivate a stable relationship.—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Resorting to an omnibus is now common, even though it is reviled by many rank-and-file lawmakers who resent being deprived of the ability to resist individual spending provisions without derailing the sole vehicle for averting a shutdown.—
Lazaro Gamio,
New York Times,
29 Sep. 2025
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When the fair’s bank account is unexpectedly drained, Gwen returns to discovers that her father, Johnny, is retiring and leaving the business 50-50 to Gwen and her sister, Kate, the fair’s longtime leading lady who resents Gwen’s presence.—
Pam Kragen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Raised under Augusta’s religious terror and hatred for women, Ed tries to hide his penchant for ladies’ underwear and masturbation to no avail.—
Aramide Tinubu,
Variety,
3 Oct. 2025
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Not as a land of fear, not as a divisiveness, not of government censorship, not of hatred.—
Jon Blistein,
Rolling Stone,
3 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The only character who seems entirely transparent is Frederik, who can’t hide his resentment of his second-class spousal status or his contempt for the sycophants and mediocrities who cling to his wife like barnacles.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
3 Oct. 2025
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Still working through residual resentments from last year, her lyrics this cycle often clash with the careful slickness of the production.—
Craig Jenkins,
Vulture,
3 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Envy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/envy. Accessed 9 Oct. 2025.
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