envious

English

Etymology

(deprecated template usage)

From Middle English envious, from Anglo-Norman envious, from Old French envieus, envious (modern French envieux), from Latin invidiōsus; more at envy. Doublet of invidious, borrowed directly from Latin. Displaced native Old English æfēstiġ, æfstiġ (“envious”), andiġ (“envious”), and Old English nīþiġ (“envious”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɛnvɪəs/

• Audio (UK):

  (file)

Adjective

envious (comparative more envious, superlative most envious)

1. Feeling or exhibiting envy; jealously desiring the excellence or good fortune of another; maliciously grudging

   an envious man, disposition, or attack; envious tongues

   • (Can we date this quote by Keble and provide title, author’s full name, and other details?)

     My soul is envious of mine eye.

2. Excessively careful; cautious.
   • (Can we date this quote by Jeremy Taylor and provide title, author’s full name, and other details?)

     No men are so envious of their health.

3. (obsolete) Malignant; mischievous; spiteful.
   • (Can we date this quote by Shakespeare and provide title, author’s full name, and other details?)

     Each envious brier his weary legs doth scratch.

4. (obsolete, poetic) Inspiring envy.
   • (Can we date this quote by Spenser and provide title, author’s full name, and other details?)

     He to him leapt, and that same envious gage / Of victor's glory from him snatched away.

Synonyms

• (excessively cautious): overcautious

Translations

feeling or exhibiting envy

• Arabic: حَسُود (ḥasūd)

  Egyptian Arabic: حسود (ḥasūd)

• Armenian: նախանձոտ (hy) (naxanjot), նախանձ (hy) (naxanj)
• Azerbaijani: paxıl
• Belarusian: зайздро́сны (zajzdrósny), заві́сны (zavísny)
• Bulgarian: зави́стлив (bg) (zavístliv)
• Catalan: envejós (ca)
• Cebuano: suyaon
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 嫉妒的 (zh) (jídù de)

• Czech: závistivý m
• Danish: misundelig
• Dutch: jaloers (nl), nijdig (nl)
• Faroese: øvundsjúkur
• Finnish: kateellinen (fi), kade (fi)
• French: envieux (fr)
• Galician: envexoso m
• Georgian: შურიანი (šuriani)
• German: neidisch (de), neidvoll (de)
• Greek: ζηλόφθονος (el) m (zilófthonos), ζηλιάρης (el) m (ziliáris)

  Ancient: φθονερός (phthonerós)

• Hungarian: irigy (hu), irigykedő
• Indonesian: iri (id)
• Irish: éadmhar
• Italian: invidioso (it)
• Japanese: 嫉妬深い (しっとぶかい, shitto bukai)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Kazakh: қызғаншақ (kk) (qyzğanşaq)
• Korean: 부럽다 (ko) (bureopda)
• Ladin: nvidiëus
• Latin: invidus
• Macedonian: завидлив (zavidliv)
• Maori: haetara
• Norman: envieux
• Norwegian: misunnelig
• Occitan: envejós
• Persian: حسود (fa) (hasud)
• Polish: zawistny (pl), zazdrosny (pl)
• Portuguese: invejoso (pt)
• Romanian: invidios (ro), pizmaș (ro)
• Russian: зави́стливый (ru) (zavístlivyj)
• Sanskrit: ईर्षु (sa) (īrṣu)
• Scottish Gaelic: farmadach
• Serbo-Croatian: surevnjiv (sh) m

  Cyrillic: за́видан

  Roman: závidan (sh)

• Slovak: závistlivý
• Slovene: zavisten
• Spanish: envidioso (es)
• Swedish: avundsjuk (sv), misundsam
• Turkish: kıskanç (tr)
• Ukrainian: за́здрісний (zázdrisnyj), зави́сний (zavýsnyj)

excessively careful

• Finnish: ylivarovainen
• Spanish: receloso
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Swedish: vaksam (sv)

malignant; mischievous; spiteful

• Finnish: ilkeä (fi)
• Greek: φθονερός (el) m (fthonerós)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Swedish: svartsjuk (sv)

See also

• jealous

Anagrams

• niveous, veinous

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Old French

Alternative forms

• enviös, envieus

Etymology

From Latin invidiōsus.

Adjective

envious m (oblique and nominative feminine singular enviouse)

1. envious; jealous
   • circa 1170, Wace, Le Roman de Rou:

     Mez mult part fu cruel e mult fu envious

     But [he] was very cruel and very jealous

Descendants

• English: envious
• French: envieux
• Norman: envieux