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# envy

«envy» in Mova's school dictionary: **the unhappy feeling of wanting something that someone…** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

### part of speech

noun (envy, uncountable); verb (envy, envies, envied, envying)

### meaning for a pupil

1) Envy is the unhappy feeling of wanting something that someone else has, like their toys, skills or luck. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/envy/#m1)

2) To envy someone is to wish you had what they have. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/envy/#m2)

3) Someone or something that is «the envy of» others is admired and wanted by them. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/envy/#m3)

4) (church) Envy is one of the seven deadly sins in Christian teaching. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/envy/#m4)

### sense in the lessons

In ethics and stories, envy is a feeling that can make people unkind or jealous; fairy tales like Snow White show its harm. In everyday talk «I envy you» can also be friendly: «I envy your holiday!». Phrases: «green with envy», «the envy of the class», «full of envy», «I don't envy you» (I would not like to be in your place).

### examples

- She felt envy when her friend got a new bike. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/envy/#x1)
- I envy you; you get to go to the beach! [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/envy/#x2)
- The queen was green with envy of Snow White's beauty. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/envy/#x3)
- Our new playground is the envy of other schools. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/envy/#x4)
- I don't envy him; he has three tests tomorrow. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/envy/#x5)
- Christians list envy among the seven deadly sins. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/envy/#x6)
- He tried to turn his envy into hard work. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/envy/#x7)
- Ducks have strong passions, whether they feel envy or pity. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/envy/#x8)

### note

Noun (uncountable) and verb; past «envied». Adjective: envious. Envy vs jealousy: envy is wanting what another has; jealousy is often fear of losing what you have (but people often mix them). «Green with envy» is an idiom; nobody turns green.

### In the corpora

- [Greed is wanting more than your share; envy is being sore that someone else has something good.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/everyday/352-party-sweets-biggest-slice-best-pencils-and-pushing/7/)
- [Envy can make you say mean things you do not really believe, like calling something ugly because you want it.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/everyday/352-party-sweets-biggest-slice-best-pencils-and-pushing/12/)
- [Envy whispers that someone else's good thing is taken from you.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/everyday/353-presents-goody-bags-certificates-and-the-newest-phone/10/)
- [Feeling envy is normal; acting on it to hurt someone is the wrong part.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/everyday/353-presents-goody-bags-certificates-and-the-newest-phone/12/)
- [Every family set-up has good bits and hard bits; kids from big and small families often envy each other.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/everyday/498-the-only-child-a-quiet-house/34/)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «envy» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/envy/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.