server

American  

[sur-ver] / ˈsɜr vər /

noun

1. a person who serves.

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

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

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

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

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

7. Computers. a computer that makes services, as access to data files, programs, and peripheral devices, available to workstations on a network.

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server British  

/ ˈsɜːvə /

noun

1. a person who serves

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

3. something that is used in serving food and drink

4. the player who serves in racket games

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

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server Scientific  

/ sûr′vər /

1. 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.

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server Cultural  

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

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Etymology

Origin of server

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English; serve + -er ¹ ( def. )

Example Sentences

Demand for server CPUs is outstripping supply, and some analysts on Wall Street have pointed out that shortages could become another bottleneck to AI development.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 9, 2026

Intel’s server CPUs have become crucial in AI data centers due to the rise of agentic AI and as the industry shifts to inference — the process of running AI models after training.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 9, 2026

Virginia and Texas lead the country in data-center construction, with 579 and 411 server farms, respectively, according to the industry website Data Center Map.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 7, 2026

While Super Micro continues to be a leader in AI server technology, the federal indictments could shift some orders to Dell in the near term, said Mizuho analyst Vijay Rakesh.

From Barron's • Apr. 6, 2026

When the server set down our fortune cookies at the end of the meal, mine was blank.

From "The Thing About Jellyfish" by Ali Benjamin

Related Words

• flight attendant
• hostess
• stewardess
• waiter
• waitress