jealous, unaware, irritated, grateful, sensitive: meanings and examples

Learn these 5 words from Intermediate set 39. Each entry includes a definition, example sentence, pronunciation, and synonyms. Use the interactive cards above to practice them.

1. jealous · adjective/ˈdʒɛləs/

   unhappy because someone has something that you want

   Tim was clearly jealous of Dan because he scored three goals in the match.

   Synonyms: envious

   Origin: Middle English: from Old French gelos, from medieval Latin zelosus (see zealous)

2. unaware · adjective/ˌənəˈwɛr/

   not knowing about something

   She was unaware that the meeting had been moved to a different room.

   Synonyms: uninformed, oblivious, unsuspecting

3. irritated · adjective/ˈɪrəˌteɪdəd/

   annoyed about something

   Do you also get irritated by the noises people make when they are eating?

   Synonyms: disturbed, upset, exasperated

4. grateful · adjective/ˈɡreɪtf(ə)l/

   thankful for something or someone

   We should all be grateful that the injury is not that bad.

   Synonyms: thankful, appreciative

   Origin: mid 16th century: from obsolete grate ‘pleasing, thankful’ (from Latin gratus) + -ful

5. sensitive · adjective/ˈsɛnsədɪv/

   easily offended or hurt

   My father is so sensitive about his health condition so try not to ask him any questions about it.

   Synonyms: touchy, easily hurt, easily offended

   Origin: late Middle English (in the sense ‘sensory’): from Old French sensitif, -ive or medieval Latin sensitivus, formed irregularly from Latin sentire ‘feel’. The current senses date from the early 19th century