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Jealousy vs. Envy
Depending on who you ask, jealousy and envy are either exact synonyms, totally different words, or near-synonyms with some degree of semantic overlap and some differences. It is difficult to make the case, based on the evidence of usage that we have, for either of the first two possibilities. Both jealousy and envy are often used to indicate that a person is covetous of something that someone else has, but jealousy carries the particular sense of “zealous vigilance” and tends to be applied more exclusively to feelings of protectiveness regarding one’s own advantages or attachments. In the domain of romance, it is more commonly found than envy. If you were to say “your salt-shaker collection fills me with jealousy,” most people would take it to mean much the same thing as “your salt-shaker collection fills me with envy.” But if someone made a flirtatious comment to your partner, you would likely say that it caused you jealousy, not envy.
Examples of jealousy in a Sentence
Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
The story is a timeless novella of love, jealousy, betrayal and tragic death, traditionally set during 1847 colonial Spain.
—Lisa Vernon Sparks, Charlotte Observer, 11 Sep. 2025
Newborn puppies are fragile, and a male dog's rough curiosity or jealousy can stress the mother or even endanger the litter.
—Alice Gibbs, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Sep. 2025
But on top of that, once Davina does start to go along with this story, her jealousy only grows.
—Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for jealousy
Cite this Entry
“Jealousy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jealousy. Accessed 14 Sep. 2025.
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jealousy
noun
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