Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Jealous
Jeal′ous
,Adj.
1.
Zealous; solicitous; vigilant; anxiously watchful.
I have been very
jealous
for the Lord God of hosts. Kings xix. 10.
How nicely
jealous
is every one of us of his own repute! Dr. H. More.
2.
Apprehensive; anxious; suspiciously watchful.
’This doing wrong creates such doubts as these,
Renders us
Renders us
jealous
and disturbs our peace. Waller.
The people are so
jealous
of the clergy's ambition. Swift.
3.
Demanding exclusive devotion; intolerant of rivalry.
Thou shalt worship no other God; for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a
jealous
God. Ex. xxxiv. 14.
4.
Disposed to suspect rivalry in matters of interest and affection; apprehensive regarding the motives of possible rivals, or the fidelity of friends; distrustful; having morbid fear of rivalry in love or preference given to another; painfully suspicious of the faithfulness of husband, wife, or lover.
If the spirit of
jealousy
come upon him, and he be jealous of his wife
. Num. v. 14.
To both these sisters have I sworn my love:
Each
Are of the adder.
Each
jealous
of the other, as the stungAre of the adder.
Shakespeare
Syn. – Suspicious; anxious; envious.
Jealous
, Suspicious
. Suspicious is the wider term. We suspect a person when we distrust his honesty and imagine he has some bad design. We are jealous when we suspect him of aiming to deprive us of what we dearly prize. Iago began by awakening the suspicions of Othello, and converted them at last into jealousy. “Suspicion may be excited by some kind of accusation, not supported by evidence sufficient for conviction, but sufficient to trouble the repose of confidence.” “Jealousy is a painful apprehension of rivalship in cases that are peculiarly interesting to us.” Cogan.
Webster 1828 Edition
Jealous
JEALOUS
,Adj.
1.
Suspicious; apprehensive of rivalship; uneasy through fear that another has withdrawn or may withdraw from one the affections of a person he loves, or enjoy some good which he desires to obtain; followed by of, and applied both to the object of love and to the rival. We say, a young man is jealous of the woman he loves, or jealous of his rival. A man is jealous of his wife,and the wife of her husband.2.
Suspicious that we do not enjoy the affection or respect of others, or that another is more loved and respected than ourselves.3.
Emulous; full of competition.4.
Solicitous to defend the honor of; concerned for the character of. I have been very jealous for the Lord God of hosts.
1 Kings 19.
5.
Suspiciously vigilant; anxiously careful and concerned for. I am jealous over you with a godly jealousy. 2 Cor.11.
6.
Suspiciously fearful. 'Tis doing wrong creates such doubts as these,
Renders us jealous and destroys our peace.
Definition 2024
jealous
jealous
English
Adjective
jealous (comparative jealouser or more jealous, superlative jealousest or most jealous)
- Suspecting rivalry in love; troubled by worries that one might have been replaced in someone's affections; suspicious of a lover or spouse's fidelity. [from 13th c.]
- Protective, zealously guarding, careful in the protection of something one has or appreciates. [from 14th c.]
- For you must not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jehovah, is a jealous God. —Exodus 34:14 (NET)
- Envious; feeling resentful of someone for a perceived advantage, material or otherwise. [from 14th c.]
- 1891, Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray
- I am jealous of everything whose beauty does not die.
- 1899, Mark Twain, The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg
- The neighbouring towns were jealous of this honourable supremacy.
- 1891, Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray
- Suspecting, suspicious.
- 1823, Walter Scott, Quentin Durward
- At length [...] the Duke demanded to know of Durward who his guide was, [...] and wherefore he had been led to entertain suspicion of him. To the first of these questions Quentin Durward answered by naming Hayraddin Maugrabin, the Bohemian; [...] and in reply to the third point he mentioned what had happened in the Franciscan convent near Namur, how the Bohemian had been expelled from the holy house, and how, jealous of his behaviour, he had dogged him to a rendezvous with one of William de la Marck's lanzknechts, where he overheard them arrange a plan for surprising the ladies who were under his protection.
- 1823, Walter Scott, Quentin Durward
Usage notes
Some usage guides seek to distinguish "jealous" from “envious”, using jealous to mean “protective of one’s own position or possessions” – one “jealously guards what one has” – and envious to mean “desirous of others’ position or possessions” – one “envies what others have”. [1] This distinction is also maintained in the psychological and philosophical literature.[2][3] However, this distinction is not reflected in usage, as reflected in the quotations of famous authors (above) using the word jealous in the sense “envious (of the possessions of others)”.
Derived terms
- jealously adverb
- jealousy noun
- jealousness noun
Related terms
Translations
suspecting rivalry in love; fearful of being replaced, in position or in affection
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protective, guarding; careful in the protection of something one has or appreciates
envious; feeling resentful of someone for a perceived advantage, material or otherwise
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References
- ↑ “Envious/Jealous”, Paul Brians, Common Errors in English Usage
- ↑ See Jealousy: Comparison with envy and Envy: Envy, jealousy and schadenfreude
- ↑ Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Envy, 1.2 Envy vs. Jealousy