Covetous - Definitions from Dictionary.com

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Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

cov·et·ous

Audio Help [kuhv-i-tuh

s] Pronunciation Key

–adjective

1.	inordinately or wrongly desirous of wealth or possessions; greedy.

2.	eagerly desirous.

[Origin: 1250–1300; ME coveitous < AF, OF; see covet, -ous

]

—Related forms

cov·et·ous·ly, adverb

cov·et·ous·ness, noun

—Synonyms 1. grasping, rapacious. See avaricious.

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
Covetous

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

cov·et·ous Audio Help (kŭv'ĭ-təs) Pronunciation Key
adj.

Excessively and culpably desirous of the possessions of another. See Synonyms at jealous.
Marked by extreme desire to acquire or possess: covetous of learning.

cov'et·ous·ly adv., cov'et·ous·ness n.

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

covetous
adjective
1.	showing extreme cupidity; painfully desirous of another's advantages; "he was never covetous before he met her"; "jealous of his success and covetous of his possessions"; "envious of their art collection"
2.	immoderately desirous of acquiring e.g. wealth; "they are avaricious and will do anything for money"; "casting covetous eyes on his neighbor's fields"; "a grasping old miser"; "grasping commercialism"; "greedy for money and power"; "grew richer and greedier"; "prehensile employers stingy with raises for their employees" [syn: avaricious]

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Covetous

Av`a*ri"cious\, a. [Cf. F. avaricieux.] Actuated by avarice; greedy of gain; immoderately desirous of accumulating property.

Syn: Greedy; stingy; rapacious; griping; sordid; close.

Usage: Avaricious, Covetous, Parsimonious, Penurious, Miserly, Niggardly. The avaricious eagerly grasp after it at the expense of others, though not of necessity with a design to save, since a man may be covetous and yet a spendthrift. The penurious, parsimonious, and miserly save money by disgraceful self-denial, and the niggardly by meanness in their dealing with others. We speak of persons as covetous in getting, avaricious in retaining, parsimonious in expending, penurious or miserly in modes of living, niggardly in dispensing. -- Av`a*ri"cious*ly, adv. -- Av`a*ri"cious*ness, n.

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