# How to say “I'm jealous” in Chinese

> The mildest way to say “I'm jealous” in Chinese is 羡慕 (xiàn mù), “I envy you (in a nice way)”. The strongest is 醋坛子 (cù tán zi), “a jealous person (lit. vinegar jar)”. Here are all 3, ranked mild to strong, with pinyin and when to use each one.

Source: https://lanlanchinese.com/how-to-say/jealous-in-chinese (updated 2026-10-18)

1. **羡慕** (xiàn mù) (strength 1/5): I envy you (in a nice way). Your friend got a new job. Smile and say it.
   Heard in a real video: 旁边都是羡慕的眼神。 "Everyone around looks at me with envy." (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y99pt9cz0bo&t=58s)
   Heard in a real video: 对啊，就我们互相羡慕， "Exactly — we just envy each other. That's it." (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fMi9fVfEl9U&t=28s)
2. **眼红** (yǎn hóng) (strength 3/5): green with envy (lit. red eyes). In chinese, envy isn't green. It's red.
   Character by character: 眼 = eyes, 红 = red.
3. **醋坛子** (cù tán zi) (strength 5/5): a jealous person (lit. vinegar jar). Jealous = "eating vinegar". This one owns the whole jar.
   Character by character: 醋 = vinegar, 坛子 = jar.

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