begrudge
Americanverb (used with object)
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begrudges,
present (3rd person singular)
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begrudged,
past participle, past
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begrudging
present participle
-
to envy or resent the pleasure or good fortune of (someone).
She begrudged her friend the award.
-
to be reluctant to give, grant, or allow.
She did not begrudge the money spent on her children's education.
verb
-
to give, admit, or allow unwillingly or with a bad grace
-
to envy (someone) the possession of (something)
Synonym Usage
See envy.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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begrudgesimple
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begrudgessimple
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have begrudgedperfect
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has begrudgedperfect
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am begrudgingprogressive
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are begrudgingprogressive
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is begrudgingprogressive
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have been begrudgingperfect progressive
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has been begrudgingperfect progressive
Past
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begrudgedsimple
-
had begrudgedperfect
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was begrudgingprogressive
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were begrudgingprogressive
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had been begrudgingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of begrudge
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English bigrucchen; see be-, grudge
Explanation
To begrudge someone for something is to wish them ill for it or to envy them. Try not to begrudge his getting the promotion over you — he's been at the company longer. An understudy might begrudge the lead her role and even go so far as to put glass in her shoes so she can't perform. An easy way to remember the meaning of this verb is to note the noun grudge lurking inside it. A grudge is ill will that you hold toward someone: to begrudge is to hold that grudge. If you begrudge your friend his happiness because he got the nicer car, your friendship will suffer.
Vocabulary lists containing begrudge
Grade 9, List 6
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The Witch of Blackbird Pond
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This Week in Words : January 19 - 25, 2019
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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.
See Examples For:
It is difficult to begrudge a restaurant that calculation.
From Salon ● Oct. 7, 2026
They’re successful, and I don’t begrudge them their money — they’re also generous, funny and thoughtful, and we genuinely love being with them.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 23, 2026
Nobody should begrudge a fighter for accepting a life-changing world-title shot, but bypassing the traditional British, Commonwealth and European route removes learning fights.
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
I never begrudge anyone who is a millionaire or billionaire his money—he or she has developed vital products for the masses.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 2, 2026
That approach had raised Oak Ridge from an unpopulated valley in remote Tennessee; when national security hung in the balance, as it did now, who would begrudge a few hundred thousand kilowatts?
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
Nobody begrudges Watkins’ success because she still seems so darned untainted by it.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 24, 2024
You will be hard-pressed to find anyone who begrudges her absence from the celebrations; in more than seven decades of service, she has given so much.
From BBC ● Jun. 1, 2022
“We all understand how imperative the men’s basketball tournament is to the structure of the N.C.A.A. — nobody begrudges that, we’re grateful for that,” she added.
From New York Times ● Apr. 4, 2021
No one begrudges the man who walked behind his mother’s coffin a rush of joy at the birth of his first child.
From The Guardian ● May 7, 2019
An incredible amount of property has been destroyed to-day; but no one begrudges it.
From A Confederate Girl's Diary by Sarah Morgan Dawson
So are the Devils now begrudged in Denver?
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 21, 2022
Over the years, I never cared for them, though I certainly never begrudged anyone who loved them.
From New York Times ● Jan. 2, 2022
It’s love, man, and the love is all around the nation from program to program, openly expressed where it used to be repressed if not begrudged.
From Washington Post ● Sep. 10, 2021
Bonds finished his tarnished career with 762, though Aaron never begrudged someone eclipsing his mark.
From Washington Times ● Jan. 22, 2021
She spoke like an American, with the same expectations of fairness, even fairness belated and begrudged, that she took into medical school all those years ago.
From "Between the World and Me" by Ta-Nehisi Coates
Canada’s history is a pendulum of violent rejection, reluctant acceptance, begrudging condescension and resigned cohabitation with America.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
The crowd, which greeted Paul with boos before settling into sullen, begrudging applause when prodded, is fully prepared for a distraction.
From Slate ● Jun. 16, 2026
But there are also other familiar faces including John C. McGinley as J.D.’s begrudging mentor Dr. Cox and Judy Reyes as nurse Carla, who also happens to be Turk’s wife.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 20, 2026
Refusing, he drags a begrudging, living, Wolverine into his timeline in a bid to save the day.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2024
I left the shop wearing a pair of rubber boots so large my sneakers fit inside and so heavy it was difficult to keep up with my begrudging guide.
From "Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children" by Ransom Riggs
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
