English Explanatory Dictionary

envy

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. Resentful desire of something possessed by another or others (but not limited to material possessions).
  2. An object of envious notice or feeling.
  3. Hatred, enmity, ill-feeling.
  4. Emulation; rivalry.
  5. Public odium; ill repute.
  6. A red-skinned variety of eating apple.
verb
  1. To feel displeasure or hatred towards (someone) for their good fortune or possessions.
  2. To resentfully or discontentedly desire (something someone else has that one lacks).
  3. To have envious feelings (at).
  4. To give (something) to (someone) grudgingly or reluctantly; to begrudge.
  5. To show malice or ill will; to rail.
  6. To do harm to; to injure; to disparage.
  7. To hate.
  8. To emulate.

Pronunciation

/ˈɛnvi/ En-uk-envy.ogg En-us-envy.ogg

Word forms

envy envies envying envied

Etymology

Etymology tree Old French enviebor. Middle English envie English envy From Middle English envie, from Old French envie, from Latin invidia (“envy”), from invidere (“to look at with malice”), from in- (“on, upon”) + videre (“to look, see”). Doublet of envie. Cognate to Proto-Slavic *zavistь (“envy”). Displaced native Old English æfest and Old English nīþ.

Antonyms

kindness

Derived words

boob envy breast envy class envy envious envy-free envyful envysome feature envy foreskin envy frienvy gender envy green with envy penis envy physics envy politics of envy social envy vagina envy womb envy envyingly unenvying
This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.
Back to search All on E Russian dictionary Dahl dictionary