selfish

[sel-fish]

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adjective

devoted to or caring only for oneself; concerned primarily with one's own interests, benefits, welfare, etc., regardless of others.
characterized by or manifesting concern or care only for oneself: selfish motives.

Origin of selfish

First recorded in 1630–40; self + -ish¹

Related formsself·ish·ly, adverbself·ish·ness, noun

Synonyms for selfish

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1. self-interested, self-seeking, egoistic; illiberal, parsimonious, stingy.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for selfishness

self-indulgence, greed, self-worship, stinginess

Examples from the Web for selfishness

Contemporary Examples of selfishness

The pontiff blasts the selfishness, arrogance and detachment of the cardinals in Rome.
Pope Francis Denounces the Vatican Elite’s 'Spiritual Alzheimer’s'
Barbie Latza Nadeau
December 23, 2014
Fatigue, sadness, or psychosis is not about choice or laziness or selfishness.
Postpartum Stigma: Why My Patient Committed Suicide
Jean Kim
August 5, 2014
In the abstract, these harsh truths steer the soul perilously close to selfishness or, worse, Objectivism.
Big Business Bullies Americans into the Machinery of Common Core
James Poulos
March 20, 2014
Phil goes through so much to lose his selfishness, to put self aside, that his redemption feels earned.
Harold Ramis’s ‘Groundhog Day’ Is About as Perfect as a Movie Gets
Malcolm Jones
February 25, 2014
The pursuit of happiness is a double-edged sword; self-reliance often bleeds into selfishness.
'Breaking Bad's' Series Finale Cements Its Status As One of the All-Time Greats
Andrew Romano
September 30, 2013

Historical Examples of selfishness

But do try to believe, at the same time, that my own selfishness has been a kindness to you.
The Spenders
Harry Leon Wilson
"He is cruel, and the very incarnation of selfishness," he said.
Weighed and Wanting
George MacDonald
In the selfishness of his misery he looked upon this as lack of sympathy with himself.
Weighed and Wanting
George MacDonald
God had made Amy so that she had less trouble from selfishness than all but a few people.
Weighed and Wanting
George MacDonald
Ambition, selfishness, and the love of success, were alike his inspiration and his ruin.
The Boy Life of Napoleon
Eugenie Foa

British Dictionary definitions for selfishness

selfish

adjective

chiefly concerned with one's own interest, advantage, etc, esp to the total exclusion of the interests of others
relating to or characterized by self-interest

Derived Formsselfishly, adverbselfishness, noun

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

Word Origin and History for selfishness

selfish

adj.

1630s, from self- + -ish. Said in Hacket's life of Archbishop Williams (1693) to have been coined by Presbyterians. In the 17c., synonyms included self-seeking (1620s), self-ended and self-ful.

Let us understand what our own selfish genes are up to, because we may then at least have the chance to upset their designs. [Richard Dawkins, "The Selfish Gene," 1976]

Related: Selfishly; selfishness. Cf. similar formations in German selbstisch, Swedish sjelfvisk, Danish selvisk.