overjealous
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Adjective:
- Excessively jealous; suspicious or unduly suspicious or fearful of being displaced by a rival. Describes a state of jealousy that is extreme, unreasonable, or beyond what is considered normal or acceptable.
Usage Examples
- Adjective:
- His overjealous behavior, like constantly checking her phone, ended their relationship.
- She became overjealous of her colleague's success, seeing every achievement as a personal threat.
- An overjealous lover may struggle to trust their partner.
Advanced Usage
- The term often implies that the jealousy is irrational, controlling, or destructive, distinguishing it from more typical feelings of jealousy.
- It can be used in both romantic contexts and other competitive situations (e.g., in a workplace or between siblings).
Variants and Related Words
- Jealous (adj): Feeling or showing envy of someone or their achievements and advantages; feeling or showing suspicion of someone's unfaithfulness in a relationship. (The root word, indicating a less extreme state).
- Overjealousy (n): The noun form describing the state or quality of being overjealous.
- His overjealousy was the cause of many arguments.
Synonyms
- Possessive
- Distrustful
- Insecure
- Suspicious
Antonyms
- Trusting
- Secure
- Confident
Related Phrases/Idioms
- Green with envy: An idiom for feeling intense jealousy. While "overjealous" is more about suspicion in relationships, this idiom relates more to coveting what others have.
- She was green with envy when she saw her friend's new car.
Adjective
- suspicious or unduly suspicious or fearful of being displaced by a rival
- a jealous lover