self-sacrifice
[self-sak-ruh-fahys, self-]
- sacrifice of one's interests, desires, etc., as for duty or the good of another.
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Origin of self-sacrifice
First recorded in 1795–1805
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for self-sacrifice
Contemporary Examples
Both followed wars; people were tired of idealism and self-sacrifice and were determined to enjoy a self- indulgent materialism.
This name carries a legacy of reconciliation (St. Francis was famous for his outreach to the Muslim world), and of self-sacrifice.
It may just require some self-sacrifice like, say, selling your car to afford the chemo.
Your capacity for self-sacrifice grows when you feel unbearable pain.
Historical Examples
Considered as a form of self-sacrifice, it was not without its pleasures.
MalboneThomas Wentworth Higginson
Somewhere in him were the seeds of self-sacrifice, the seeds of a generous devotion to others.
Within the LawMarvin Dana
For a man of real convictions this is a fine opportunity of self-sacrifice.
The Secret AgentJoseph Conrad
As they passed he tasted to the full all the bitter joys of self-sacrifice.
The Fat and the ThinEmile Zola
Miss Emily and me had a talk about self-sacrifice and I see my duty plain.
Thankful's InheritanceJoseph C. Lincoln
self-sacrifice
- the sacrifice of one's own desires, interest, etc, for the sake of duty or for the well-being of others
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for self-sacrifice
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper