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
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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
Dade Hayes, Deadline, 24 Mar. 2026
The city protected a public lakefront that remains the envy of cities around the world.
—Tonika Lewis Johnson, Chicago Tribune, 22 Mar. 2026
Sean Williams, Harpers Magazine, 24 Feb. 2026
On the other side of town, the Los Angeles Dodgers have become the franchise envied by fans and teams alike given their massive spending spree and utilizing deferred money to field an All-Star roster that continues to get better by the year.
—Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 23 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for envy
Noun
Epic, which is privately held, became the envy of the media landscape when Fortnite launched in 2017.
—Dade Hayes, Deadline, 24 Mar. 2026
The city protected a public lakefront that remains the envy of cities around the world.
—Tonika Lewis Johnson, Chicago Tribune, 22 Mar. 2026
Verb
Pierson walks me through the kind of workplace you’re supposed to envy.
—Sean Williams, Harpers Magazine, 24 Feb. 2026
On the other side of town, the Los Angeles Dodgers have become the franchise envied by fans and teams alike given their massive spending spree and utilizing deferred money to field an All-Star roster that continues to get better by the year.
—Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 23 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for envy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for envy
Noun
-
Money and jealousy are the root of the play’s evils, with more deadly sins released in a world of posh, uppity arrogance.—
David John Chávez,
Mercury News,
27 Mar. 2026
-
Lola Tung plays the new girl who joins and things go awry as secrets and jealousies create friction among the group.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
27 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Readers may resent being abstracted into algebra, but they are nonetheless invited to sort themselves into one of four categories on the basis of a short quiz.—
Becca Rothfeld,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
-
Johnny Jones, secretary-treasurer of the TSA division of the American Federation of Government Employees, said union members resent having their livelihoods used as tools and talking points in a game of political brinkmanship.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
28 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
What was disturbing were people who sped past a foot away from elderly people, shouting obscenities with faces twisted in hatred.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
1 Apr. 2026
-
Këkht Aräkh is not unique in his loneliness; the pain of being alone is as thematically central to DSBM as the hatred of Christianity.—
Sadie Sartini Garner,
Pitchfork,
31 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
While frustration in both parties between the House and Senate is endemic to the institution of Congress, resentment within the GOP felt almost palpable on March 27.—
Zachary Schermele,
USA Today,
28 Mar. 2026
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Yet maybe, as the cartoonish machismo of Trumpism proves its hollowness, America’s latent resentment can be channeled to better ends.—
Spencer Kornhaber,
The Atlantic,
27 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Envy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/envy. Accessed 2 Apr. 2026.
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