jealous

adjective

jeal·​ous ˈje-ləs 

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

jealously adverb

jealousness noun

Did you know?

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.”

Synonyms

• possessive

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 on the Web

The show’s tone frequently changes to match the runaway plot, whose digressive subplots involve time travel, a mad scientist and his jealous nephew, and Baek-joong’s food critic ex-girlfriend (played by the celebrity fashion model Jung Ho-yeon). —Simon Abrams, New York Times, 27 Dec. 2024

His explanation was that Alice was jealous of their relationship, but Andrea and Jenny suspect that this was not the real reason. —Rachel Aviv, The New Yorker, 23 Dec. 2024

Kind demonstrates his emphatic comic range both vocally and physically — even getting laughs from variations of chair slouching — as a jealous doctor whose wife bonds with the Elephant Man. —Frank Rizzo, Variety, 23 Dec. 2024

The girls are getting eaten alive by plankton, their hands are making actual prunes jealous, and a snake starts swimming in circles around them. —Emma Sharpe, Vulture, 18 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English jelous, from Anglo-French gelus, from Vulgar Latin *zelosus, from Late Latin zelus zeal — more at zeal

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2a

Kids Definition

jealous

adjective

jeal·​ous ˈjel-əs 

1

: demanding complete devotion

2

: feeling mean resentment toward a rival or competitor

3

: fearful of the loss of a loved one's devotion

4

: watchful, careful

jealously adverb