What does zealous mean?
Word: Zealous
Part of Speech: Adjective
Meaning: Zealous means full of energy and eager enthusiasm for something you care about.
Synonyms: keen, eager, enthusiastic
Antonyms: apathetic, half-hearted
Word origin: Came through Latin from Greek zelos.
How do you spell zealous?
Syllables: zeal - ous
Tricky part: The opening has a short e sound, as in bed, but it is written ea. Students who go by the sound write zelous.
Watch out for: zelous, zellous, zealus
Memory tip: Wealth and health also write that short sound as ea; put this word in their group.
Zealous in a sentence
Example 1: Our zealous class monitor reminds everyone about library books a week early.
Example 2: A zealous young editor checked every fact in the school magazine.
Example 3: Rohan is a zealous collector of old stamps.
Fun Fact
Zealous and jealous are word cousins: both go back to the same Greek word.
Practise the CREST Way
Jumble Tumble
Choose the correct sequence of the jumbled letters to form a meaningful word:
1234567 LAOZSUE
a) 4712365
b) 7421365
c) 4721365
d) 4723165
Show answer
c) 4721365. The rare Z at position 4 leads, with the E at position 7 straight after it.
Word Twins
Choose the correct option to fill both blanks:
1. Priya felt a little ____ when her sister got the bigger room. 2. The ____ young volunteers were at the beach by dawn, eager to clean up.
a) 'zealous' in both
b) 'jealous' in both
c) jealous/zealous
d) zealous/jealous
Show answer
c) jealous/zealous. Envy suits one sentence and keen energy suits the other.
Word Champ
In which option are the given words arranged in alphabetical order?
1. zenith 2. zealous 3. zeal 4. zebra
a) 3214
b) 4321
c) 3241
d) 2341
Show answer
c) 3241. The shorter word comes before the longer one that starts the same way, and then the third letters decide.
Word Tally
You get 2 marks for each correctly spelt word in the list. How many marks will you score?
zealous, diligant, earnest, persistant, commited, devoted
a) 6
b) 8
c) 4
d) 10
Show answer
a) 6. Diligent, persistent and committed are misspelt, so only three words earn marks.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which team member is the zealous one?
a) the one who quietly avoids the difficult jobs
b) the one who waits to be told what to do
c) the one who offers to do every extra task
d) the one who leaves as soon as work ends
Show answer
c) the one who offers to do every extra task
2. 'Mrs Das praised the zealous new recruits.' What had they shown?
a) a strong wish to go home early
b) a strong drive to get things done
c) a strong dislike of hard work
d) a strong habit of arriving late
Show answer
b) a strong drive to get things done
