self-service

[ self-sur-vis ]

/ ˈsɛlfˈsɜr vɪs /

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See synonyms for self-service on Thesaurus.com

noun

the system of serving oneself in a restaurant, shop, gas station, or other facility, without the aid of a waiter, clerk, attendant, etc.

adjective

noting or pertaining to a cafeteria, store, etc., designed for the patron or customer to gather food or merchandise from a display counter or shelves without the aid of attendants and pay at a cashier's desk upon leaving.

of, for, or pertaining to something designed to be used or enjoyed without the aid of an attendant: self-service banking; self-service elevators.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Also self-serve

[self-surv] /ˈsɛlfˈsɜrv/ .

Origin of self-service

First recorded in 1920–25

Words nearby self-service

self-satisfying, self-sealing, self-seeker, self-seeking, self-selection, self-service, self-serving, self-similarity, self-slaughter, self-slayer, self-soothe

How to use self-service in a sentence

We see detoxing as a path to transcendence, a symbol of modern urban virtue and self-transformation through abstinence.
How Taryn Toomey’s ‘The Class’ Became New York’s Latest Fitness Craze|Lizzie Crocker|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Stephanie Giorgio, a classical musician, credits The Class for helping her cope with anxiety, focus, fear, and self-doubt.
How Taryn Toomey’s ‘The Class’ Became New York’s Latest Fitness Craze|Lizzie Crocker|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
For someone with anorexia, self-starvation makes them feel better.
How Skinny Is Too Skinny? Israel Bans ‘Underweight’ Models|Carrie Arnold|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
I went into the audition as Fericito, the Venezuelan percussionist, and then I did a self-defense expert.
Coffee Talk with Fred Armisen: On ‘Portlandia,’ Meeting Obama, and Taylor Swift’s Greatness|Marlow Stern|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST

Those who come to the Dinner Party are self-selecting; they do want to talk about it.
Everyone at This Dinner Party Has Lost Someone|Samantha Levine|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The proceedings of the day commenced with divine service, performed by Unitarian and Baptist ministers.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 60, No. 372, October 1846|Various
Let the thought of self pass in, and the beauty of great action is gone, like the bloom from a soiled flower.
Pearls of Thought|Maturin M. Ballou
Now this setting up of an orderly law-abiding self seems to me to imply that there are impulses which make for order.
Children's Ways|James Sully
The badness of the gunpowder used by the Mexicans, was again of great service to us.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
At present, Louis was too self-absorbed by the struggles within him, to look deep into what was passing around him.
The Pastor's Fire-side Vol. 3 of 4|Jane Porter

British Dictionary definitions for self-service

self-service

adjective

of or denoting a shop, restaurant, petrol station, etc, where the customer serves himself

noun

the practice of serving oneself, as in a shop, etc

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

self-service

Origin of self-service

Words nearby self-service

Words related to self-service

How to use self-service in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for self-service