server

[sur-ver]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR server ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a person who serves.

a person who waits on tables; a waiter or waitress.

something that serves or is used in serving, as a salver.

a broad fork, spoon, or spatula for dishing out and serving individual portions of food, as vegetables, cake, or pie.

Ecclesiastical. an attendant on the priest at Mass, who arranges the altar, makes the responses, etc.

(in tennis, badminton, handball, etc.) the player who puts the ball or shuttlecock in play.

a computer that makes services, as access to data files, programs, and peripheral devices, available to workstations on a network.Compare client(def 5), file server.

Origin of server

Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at serve, -er¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for server

assistant, attendant, slave, helper, waiter, hostess, waitress, stewardess, help, dependent, hireling, domestic, serf, minion, retainer, drudge, menial, host, porter, live-in

Examples from the Web for server

Contemporary Examples of server

“Many chains have nutrition info on their menu, Web site or available from your server if you ask,” says Dubost.
The Truth About Salt: Should You Shake the Habit?
DailyBurn
May 5, 2014
Then the server would respond by echoing, “Got it, the secret word is 'Mendax'.”
How to Mitigate the Damage of the Heartbleed Security Hole
Joshua Kopstein
April 11, 2014
“This machine is a server, do not power it down,” the message reads.
World Wide Web Turns 25
Nico Hines
March 12, 2014
The server said the kitchen staff was exclusively black, but that the “front of house” staff was about half black, half white.
Paula Deen, Teflon Chef
Winston Ross
June 21, 2013
In this clip, she is infuriated over a server touching her wine glass with her thumb, and gives her a piece of her mind.
Lucille Bluth’s Best Mothering Moments in ‘Arrested Development’ (VIDEO)
Jean Trinh
May 12, 2013

Historical Examples of server

Having offered to act as server, Pierre repeated the "Confiteor."
The Three Cities Trilogy, Complete
Emile Zola
Before dishes are put on, the Steward enters first, then the Server.
Early English Meals and Manners
Various
The ball is then put in play by the server, who may hit the ball but once.
Games for the Playground, Home, School and Gymnasium
Jessie H. Bancroft
A "fault" is the failure of the server to send the ball into the proper court.
Harper's Young People, June 7, 1881
Various
The priest closed his book and went off, followed by the server.
Ulysses
James Joyce

British Dictionary definitions for server

server

noun

a person who serves

mainly RC Church a person who acts as acolyte or assists the priest at Mass

something that is used in serving food and drink

the player who serves in racket games

computing a computer or program that supplies data or resources to other machines on a network

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 server

late 14c., agent noun from serve (v.). Computer sense by 1992.

server in Science

server

[sûr′vər]

A computer that manages centralized data storage or network communications resources. A server provides and organizes access to these resources for other computers linked to it.

server in Culture

server

Computer or software that performs administration or coordination functions within a network.