to envy somebody for something or to envy somebody of something

Hello all users!

I envy you for your lovely car. We all envy you for your beautiful children.

Could the above sentences be as well written in the following manner?:

I envy you of your lovely car. We all envy you of your beautiful children.

I am used to seeing "envy" used with "of" rather than "for".

Maybe there are two ways of expressing the same thought.

Thank you.

envy for - Idioms - by the Free Dictionary, Thesaurus and Encyclopedia.

billmcd said:

"For" would be more common/natural in AmE.

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In BrE too.

It doesn't mean that 'of' is out of the question, does it?

What does BE version have to say?

JACEK1 said:

It doesn't mean that 'of' is out of the question, does it?

What does BE version have to say?

Click to expand...

Something could be "the envy of" somebody.

Her long legs are the envy of the modelling world.
His genius with mathematics is the envy of his classmates.

Is it also possible to say "I envy you your lovely car" and how does it compare to "I envy you for your lovely car"?

Could somebody express their opinion?

Please.

JACEK1 said:

Is it also possible to say "I envy you your lovely car" and how does it compare to "I envy you for your lovely car"?

Click to expand...

I have no problem with that construction.

I envy you your beautiful hair.
She envied him his ability to stay cool under pressure.

Also keep in mind that you can be envious of something, if you insist on using "of".