Etymograph

English

envious

Envious comes from Old French envieus, from Latin invidiōsus ‘envious, invidious, hostile’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *weyd- ‘to see’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*weyd-1‘to see’root named by Wiktionary
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEinvidiōsus1‘envious, invidious, hostile’
  3. Old Frenchc. 842–1400envieus1
  4. Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400envious1
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500envious1‘envious (having envy)’
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1590envious1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English envious
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1590, Edmund Spenser, Book I, Canto IV: “He to him leapt, and that same envious gage…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*weyd-Wiktionary, English envious‘to see’root named by Wiktionary
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEinvidiōsusWiktionary, English envious‘envious, invidious, hostile’
  3. Old Frenchc. 842–1400envieusWiktionary, English envious
  4. Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400enviousWiktionary, English envious
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500enviousWiktionary, English envious‘envious (having envy)’
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1590enviousWiktionary, English envious. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1590, Edmund Spenser, Book I, Canto IV: “He to him leapt, and that same envious gage…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *weyd- ‘to see’

story, guy, idea, video, provide, review, visit, evidence, guide, interview, advice, witness, wise, historic, wisdom, vision, wit, idol, wizard, historian, advise, visa, invisible, visibility, evident, witty, guise, vista, steroid, revise, tabloid, prudent, revue, jurisprudence, druid, prudence, improvise, twit, hypothyroidism, voyeur, 118 more

through Latin invidiōsus ‘envious, invidious, hostile’

invidious

Today it means

adj Feeling or exhibiting envy; jealously desiring the excellence or good fortune of another; maliciously grudging.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “envious”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *weyd- / envious

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