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unselfish

[ uhn-sel-fish ]
/ ʌnˈsɛl fɪʃ /
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adjective

not selfish; disinterested; generous; altruistic.

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RELATED WORDS

selfless, noble, generous, self-effacing, altruistic, benevolent, charitable, chivalrous, devoted, disinterested, extroverted, helpful, humanitarian, incorruptible, indulgent, liberal, loving, magnanimous, self-sacrificing, self-forgetting

Nearby words

unseelie, unseemly, unseen, unsegregated, unselfconscious, unselfish, unsell, unsentimental, unseparable, unser, unser, al

Origin of unselfish

First recorded in 1690–1700; un-1 + selfish
Related formsun·self·ish·ly, adverbun·self·ish·ness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for unselfish

British Dictionary definitions for unselfish

unselfish

/ (ʌnˈsɛlfɪʃ) /

adjective

not selfish or greedy; generous
Derived Formsunselfishly, adverbunselfishness, 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 unselfish

unselfish

adj.

1690s, from un- (1) "not" + selfish. Cf. Danish uselvisk, Swedish osjälfvisk. Related: Unselfishly; unselfishness.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper