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Webster 1913 Edition

Greedy

Greed′y

(grēd′y̆)
,
Adj.
[
Com
par.
Greedier
(-ĭ-ẽr)
;
sup
erl.
Greediest
.]
[OE.
gredi
, AS.
grǣdig
,
grēdig
; akin to D.
gretig
, OS.
grādag
, OHG.
grātag
, Dan.
graadig
, OSw.
gradig
,
grådig
, Icel.
grāðugr
, Goth.
grēdags
greedy,
grēdēn
to be hungry; cf. Skr.
gṛdh
to be greedy. Cf.
Greed.
]
1.
Having a keen appetite for food or drink; ravenous; voracious; very hungry; – followed by of;
as, a lion that is
greedy
of his prey
.
2.
Having a keen desire for anything; vehemently desirous; eager to obtain; avaricious;
as,
greedy
of gain
.

Webster 1828 Edition

Greedy

GREE'DY

,
Adj.
[L. gradior,and probably signifies reaching forward.]
1.
Having a keen appetite for food or drink; ravenous; voracious; very hungry; followed by of; as a lion that is greedy of his prey. Ps.17.
2.
Having a keen desire of any thing; eager to obtain; as greedy of gain.

Definition 2024

greedy

greedy

English

Adjective

greedy ‎(comparative greedier, superlative greediest)

  1. Having greed; consumed by selfish desires.
    • 1918, W. B. Maxwell, chapter 7, in The Mirror and the Lamp:
      “[…] Churchill, my dear fellow, we have such greedy sharks, and wolves in lamb's clothing. Oh, dear, there's so much to tell you, so many warnings to give you, but all that must be postponed for the moment.”
  2. Prone to overeat.
  3. (regular expressions) Tending to match as much text as possible.
    This regular expression performs a greedy match.‎
  4. (computer science, of an algorithm) That tries to find the global optimum by finding the local optimum at each stage.

Synonyms

  • (having greed): Wikisaurus:greedy
  • (prone to overeat): gluttonous

Antonyms

Derived terms

Translations

External links

  • greedy in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
  • greedy in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911

Anagrams

Etymology

From Middle English gredy, from Old English grǣdiġ ‎(“greedy, hungry, eager”), from Proto-Germanic *grēdagaz ‎(“hungry”), from Proto-Germanic *grēdaz, *grēduz, *grēdô ‎(“hunger”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰrēdʰ- ‎(“to be hungry, long for”), equivalent to greed +‎ -y. Cognate with Old Saxon grādag ("gladly, willingly" compare Dutch graag), Old High German grātag ‎(“greedy”), Danish grådig ‎(“greedy”) (from Old Norse gráðigr ‎(“greedy”), gráði ‎(“greed, hunger”)), Gothic 𐌲𐍂𐌴𐌳𐌰𐌲𐍃 ‎(grēdags, “hungry”). Non-Germanic cognates include Albanian ngordh ‎(“to crave for, starve, die”).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈɡɹiːdi/
  • Rhymes: -iːdi

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