Is there a difference between "jealousy" and "envy"??? I tend to think jealousy is more negative than envy???

Good question, KittyPal!
And I never realized that Merriam-Webster's definitions would be so different!

M-W defines "jealousy" as:
1: a "jealous" disposition, attitude, or feeling
2: zealous vigilance

And "jealous" as:
1 a: intolerant of rivalry or unfaithfulness b: disposed to suspect rivalry or unfaithfulness
2: hostile toward a rival or one believed to enjoy an advantage
3: vigilant in guarding a possession

And M-W defines "envy" as:
1: painful or resentful awareness of an advantage enjoyed by another joined with a desire to possess the same advantage
2 obsolete: MALICE
3: an object of envious notice or feeling

I guess neither one is a very desirable frame of mind, huh?
But I suppose the difference may also lie in the mind of the individual - each word may conjure up certain images, some of which may seem less tolerable than the other.

To me, personally, "jealousy" is more of an emotional, insecure thing. "Envy" is a desire. Hmmm... You made me think!

You left out covetousness, kittypal.

That's the more biblical of the words, isn't it? I'd say that all of these are in the same ballpark, when it comes to the underlying moral failure they describe.

But you are surely right about envy being milder than unadulterated jealousy. We often use envy, in fact, with no negative connotations at all, almost as a synonym for "admire," as in, "I really envy you for your skill at golf, Jack." Note that "I'm really jealous of your skill at golf, Jack" doesn't quite say the same thing.

There is also a tendancy to reserve the word "jealous" for matters sexual, and here the meanings really do begin to diverge. I'm perhaps "jealous" of my wife's previous suitors, without being exactly envious of them. In fact, I'll probably throw in my wife's face the fact that I have nothing whatsoever to envy them for. But still I'm a little jealous.

Can't 'jealous' have a positive meaning? If you are jealous of your (own) reputation, you will take care to do nothing to damage it.

From the Washington Times: "Vince Foster was by all accounts a decent man, jealous of his reputation as a decent man and a credit to poor Arkansas, which has been badly abused by Bill and Hillary and the people they brought up with them from Little Rock."

I always understood "jealousy" to mean not wanting others to have what you have, and "envy" to mean to you wanting what others have.

TIE, thanks for looking those up!! Maiku, what a great example, you're so right no one envies their lovers suitors. Fourbrick, I had always considered envy to mean that even though I wish I had "that" I am still thrilled for your good fortune, but jealousy to me is when you almost have spite for someone, like I want "that" that person doesn't even deserve it!

quote:

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Originally posted by newnickname:
From the Washington Times: "Vince Foster was by all accounts a decent man, jealous of his reputation as a decent man and a credit to poor Arkansas..."

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This is an interesting example, NNN. I think it's the kind of usage M-W has in mind with its gloss of "zealous vigilance" as cited by TIE above.

Considering how often the God of the Old Testament is given the attribute of "jealous," (e.g. Exodus 20:5; Exodus 34:14), I'd certainly have to agree that being jealous might not have to be considered all bad all the time.

The Oxford English Dictionary gives : Jealous: troubled by fear suspicion or belief that one is being or might be displaced in someone's affections. 2. ( Of God) Demanding absolute faithfulness 3.resentful or envious of another person or his or her possible or actual success... The word has the same root as zeal (originally meaning 'ardent feeling about ..'. So jealousy was founded in fear of loss.It was originally seen as a natural anxiety not a sin.

Envy is via French from Latin 'invidere' meaning 'to look maliciously or spitefully at; to cast an evil eye upon'. It always had this connotation of malice and of sin.It is one of the Seven Deadly Sins, after all. The O.E.D. gives
Envy: 1. hostility , malice, enmity 2.A feeling of resentful or discontented longing aroused by another person's better fortune [etc.]
It is only quite recently that envy and its related adjective and verb have been reduced colloquially and jocularly to mean a mild form of this feeling.The OED gives only an example from Barbara Pym, a modern novelist,to illustrate this usage.