jealousy
Pluraljealousies
Often confused with envy
- 1The state or feeling of being jealous, as when someone resents a rival or envies what another person has.
His jealousy over his brother's success slowly poisoned their relationship.
Old jealousies between the two departments came back to the surface during the merger.
Similarenvy, resentment
Note
The feeling usually takes over or of before its cause: jealousy over the possessions of others, the jealousy of rivals of each other's share. Used as a count noun, in the plural, it names lasting rivalries between groups rather than a passing feeling, as in old jealousies between departments, or among a nobility watching a favored newcomer.
- 2Close and watchful concern for someone or something.
Her jealousy for the family's good name made her watch every guest closely.
The town council guarded its ancient rights with a jealousy that outsiders found hard to understand.
Note
The older, watchful side of the word, nearest to its relatives zeal and zealous: anxious, protective care with no envy or rivalry in it. Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte Darthur (1485) has a lady who would have driven a young knight away for the jealousy she had of his life, fearing for him. Today it sounds archaic, and most readers will hear the envious feeling unless the protective care is plain.
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Origin
From Middle English jalousie, from Old French jalousie, equivalent to jealous + -y. It is a doublet of jalousie and also related to zeal and zealous.