self-serving
Americanadjective
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preoccupied with one's own interests, often disregarding the truth or the interests, well-being, etc., of others.
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serving to further one's own selfish interests.
adjective
Etymology
Origin of self-serving
First recorded in 1900–05
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Working with screenwriter Will Soodik, Parsons has gone back into that banal maze to find an uncannily mature story about loss and stagnation, about how our self-serving narratives barricade us from emotional growth.
From Los Angeles Times • May 28, 2026
It is not much more than a piece of paper generated in a self-serving way by ICE, free of review to substantiate what is stated in it.
From Salon • Jan. 23, 2026
But the TRA's panel said his apology was "self-serving" and did not recognise the severity of his misconduct.
From BBC • Jan. 12, 2026
In a town — and a time — of selfishness and self-serving, Reiner was one of the good guys, always fighting, both through his films and his politics, to make the world kinder and closer.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 15, 2025
He’s not one of those overly social, back-slapping types for whom the process of acquiring acquaintances is obvious and self-serving.
From "The Tipping Point" by Malcolm Gladwell
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
