jealous

adjective

ˈje-ləs How to pronounce jealous (audio)
Definition of jealousnext
1
as in possessive
intolerant of rivalry or unfaithfulness a boyfriend who became jealous whenever she paid attention to anyone but him

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in envious
having or showing mean resentment of another's possessions or advantages was jealous of his friend's great popularity with the girls

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of jealous When Chiefs season-ticket member Chloe Elise, a money expert with more than 244,000 Instagram followers, showed off her Chiefs coat coat on Instagram, jealous fans from other teams jumped into the comments. — Kansas City Star, 22 Sep. 2026 One particularly problematic scene has the villagers, among them the lovestruck and jealous Wilf, confronting Philip until he is forced to lash out physically, leading to further condemnation. — Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 18 Sep. 2026 But no need to be jealous because that was not a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. — Jennet Jusu, Allure, 10 Sep. 2026 Nina Shipman, who came from a prominent show business family to star alongside Fred MacMurray in The Oregon Trail and step in for Grandpa in a ploy to make Lily jealous on one of the wackiest episodes of The Munsters, has died. — Mike Barnes, HollywoodReporter, 9 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for jealous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for jealous
  1. possessive
  2. envious
  3. covetous
  4. resentful
  5. malicious
Adjective
  • Obsession follows a socially awkward young man named Bear, who finds himself at a crossroads when his wish to win the heart of his longtime crush takes on frighteningly possessive consequences.
    — Mariam Bagdady, Vogue, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Many historians believe Hitler was infatuated with Raubal and that his behaviour towards her became intensely controlling and possessive in nature.
    — Sophie Tanno, CNN Money, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of possessive
Adjective
  • Kansas Jayhawks men’s basketball coach Bill Self isn’t envious of football players and coaches from KU and Arizona State who recently traveled 4,386 and 5,200 miles, respectively, to play their 2026 Big 12 opener in London.
    — Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 1 Oct. 2026
  • But many a Premier League team will be envious of the huge screens with 8 mm resolution, the best in the Big Ten.
    — The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 6 Sep. 2026
Definition of envious
Adjective
  • Starring Elordi and Barry Keoghan, Fennell’s dark comedy about class resentment and covetous destruction was sold on the promise of erotic excess.
    — Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 9 Feb. 2026
  • For most players, that amount of storage is realistically enough for all but the most covetous data hoarders.
    — Matt Kamen, Wired News, 3 Aug. 2025
Definition of covetous
Adjective
  • Eventually released, the resentful ex-con experiences a Damascene conversion due to the Christian compassion of Monseigneur Myriel (Frédéric Pierrot).
    — Jessica Kiang, Variety, 23 Sep. 2026
  • Over the five hours that follow, the series tracks what led to the tragedy — specifically, his complicated relationship with his resentful, bigoted next-door neighbor, Clive (David Morrissey).
    — David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 9 Sep. 2026
Definition of resentful
Adjective
  • Once installed, the malicious app pushes you to enable Android's Accessibility service.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Companies should detect prompt injection, malicious or compromised tools, behavioral anomalies, data exfiltration and other threats.
    — Shashwat Sehgal, Forbes.com, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of malicious

Browse Nearby Words

jazzy
jealous
jealously
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Cite this Entry

“Jealous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/jealous. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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