resentful
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
- resentfully adverb
- resentfulness noun
- unresentful adjective
- unresentfully adverb
- unresentfulness noun
Etymology
Origin of resentful
Explanation
If you are resentful of someone, you feel ill will toward him, mixed with envy, like when a newer coworker gets the promotion you've been working toward for years. The verb resent comes from the word for "feeling," but we only use it to talk about bad, stinging feelings. You might resent having to work late, but if your boss pays you a higher wage for overtime, maybe you’ll be less resentful. When there are clear inequalities among people, it often makes them resentful. Someone who wears themselves out doing heavy labor might be resentful of their boss who never breaks a sweat but earns more money.
Vocabulary lists containing resentful
In the Mood? 100 Words to Describe Emotions
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The Breadwinner
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ACT Reading Test: Words to Capture Tone, List 3
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
At the same time, the results of the study also suggest that coalition building is possible, even among the racially resentful.
From Salon • Jan. 19, 2026
I find that I am increasingly resentful that he refuses to help me any more financially.
From MarketWatch • Dec. 5, 2025
He tried hard to be a better dad as he got older, and I decided to stop being resentful.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 2, 2025
Eli, who’s married but in a complicated open relationship situation with his increasingly resentful wife, would rather not have to choose sides in the vaccine mandate debate.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 17, 2025
Harry leaned up against one of the golden pillars and watched Ginny, who was now dancing with Fred and George’s friend Lee Jordan, trying not to feel resentful about the promise he had given Ron.
From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
