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Anonymous Posted 20 years ago
Vocabulary

zealous - negative or positive?

does the word zealous usually has a negative or positive connotetion?
  

Top answer

Hi, It's usually positive. On the other hand, over-zealous sounds negative. Best wishes, Clive

— Clive

  • Hi, It's usually positive.
  • On the other hand, over-zealous sounds negative.
  • Best wishes, Clive
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5 Answers
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Hi,

It's usually positive. On the other hand, over-zealous sounds negative.

Best wishes, Clive
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CliveHi,

It's usually positive. On the other hand, over-zealous sounds negative.

Best wishes, Clive
Hi, Clive. I was about to respond much the way you did, but I would have said "overly zealous" (no hyphen). How does that sound to you? (I normally don't add anything to your sage ad
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Hi Philip,

My dictionary offers overzealous (without a hyphen), but I certainly wouldn't object to overly zealous.

Google suggests that forms like over-zealous, over zealous and overzealous are quite a bit more common.

Best wis
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interesting, I thouhgt the other way around. Is it true also in (for?) Religious context?
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I am not sure if zealous is used in a religious context. Perhaps you were referring to zealots, as both "zealotes" and "zealous" are derived from the same Greek word. Were zealots good or bad? Well it depends whether you study the history of the Roman empire or not, I suppose.
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