Meaning & use
coveted
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Meanings
adjectivebefore a noun
Strongly wanted by many people because it is rare, valuable or prestigious.
Grammar: Usually comes before a noun: a coveted prize.
Patterns
- a coveted prize
- a coveted spot
She won the coveted first prize in the national contest.
A coveted seat at the final cost hundreds of dollars.
The coveted job attracted thousands of applicants.
verbtransitiveformal
Past tense and past participle of covet: wanted something that belongs to someone else.
Grammar: Takes an object: he coveted his neighbor's car.
Patterns
- covet something
He coveted his brother's old guitar for years.
She secretly coveted her friend's promotion.
The two nations had long coveted the same island.
Word forms
| base form | covet |
|---|---|
| third person singular | covets |
| -ing form | coveting |
Common combinations
- coveted prize
- The coveted prize went to a young chef.
- coveted title
- He defended his coveted title.
- coveted award
- The coveted award is given each spring.
- coveted position
- A coveted position opened up in the department.
- most coveted
- It is one of the most coveted jobs in publishing.
Synonyms and how they differ
- sought-after
- Sought-after is plainer and everyday, with less emotional intensity than coveted.
- desirable
- Desirable simply means worth wanting, while coveted means many people long for it.
- prized
- Prized stresses being highly valued by those who own it, not just wanted.
- envied
- Envied describes feelings toward someone who has something, while coveted describes the thing.
Opposites
Word family
- covet verb
- to long to have something that is another's
- covetous adjective
- showing a strong desire for what others have
- covetousness noun
- strong greed for what others have
- covetously adverb
- in a desiring way
Commonly confused: coveted or coveted vs covered?
coveted vs coveted vs covered
Coveted means greatly desired, while covered means having something on top or included; they sound alike but are unrelated.
Practice
Hundreds of chefs applied for the ___ place in the famous kitchen.
Choose one answer.
Coveted means strongly desired, which fits a prestigious place. Covert means secret, and covered and covenant do not fit.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “coveted”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.