Definition of selfish
1 : concerned excessively or exclusively with oneself : seeking or concentrating on one's own advantage, pleasure, or well-being without regard for others
2 : arising from concern with one's own welfare or advantage in disregard of others a selfish act
3 : being an actively replicating repetitive sequence of nucleic acid that serves no known function selfish DNA; also : being genetic material solely concerned with its own replication selfish genes
selfishly
adverbselfishness
nounRead the Latest from M-W
Examples of selfish in a Sentence
She's interested only in her own selfish concerns.
I wish he'd spend less time with his friends and more time with me. Am I being selfish?
Recent Examples of selfish from the Web
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Q: In the end Gordon Hayward turns out to be as selfish and uncaring as LeBron James and Kevin Durant.
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Commenters on social media mocked the governor as selfish and arrogant and cracked jokes about the sight of the heavyset Christie in a beach chair in sandals, shorts and a T-shirt.
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I was told bisexuals were degenerates who are selfish and just want the best of both worlds.
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Meyer is on the one hand, as a politician and person, more awful than ever—more craven, more selfish, more willing to betray those who are loyal to her for momentary political gain.
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Even more concerning, from a selfish perspective, is if the Knicks really do trade Porzingis all of New York will riot.
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Nora can be very selfish, very self-righteous at times, very aggressive, very stubborn.
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While most of the ship’s passengers are admittedly flawed, Jamie is unapologetically selfish and self-centered and obsesses about her miscarriage and former lover.
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There’s nothing inherently selfish in valuing your own survival.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'selfish.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
First Known Use of selfish
1640
SELFISH Defined for English Language Learners
selfish
playDefinition of selfish for English Language Learners
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: having or showing concern only for yourself and not for the needs or feelings of other people
SELFISH Defined for Kids
selfish
playDefinition of selfish for Students
: taking care of only your own needs and feelings without thought for others
selfishly
adverbselfishness
nounMedical Dictionary
selfish
playMedical Definition of selfish
: being an actively replicating repetitive sequence of nucleic acid that serves no known function selfish DNA; also : being genetic material solely concerned with its own replication selfish genes
Learn More about selfish
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See words that rhyme with selfish Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for selfish Spanish Central: Translation of selfish Nglish: Translation of selfish for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of selfish for Arabic speakers
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