server

noun

serv·​er ˈsər-vər 

1

: one that serves food or drink

2

: the player who serves (as in tennis)

3

: something used in serving food or drink

4

: one that serves legal processes upon another

5

: the celebrant's assistant at mass

6

: a computer in a network that is used to provide services (such as access to files or shared peripherals or the routing of email) to other computers in the network

Synonyms of server

• waiter
• waitress

Examples of server in a Sentence

She asked our server for another glass of wine.

we had barely finished ordering when the server brought our salads

Recent Examples on the Web

Groceries, restaurant meals, delivery orders and drive-through runs all throw off a timestamped record of what changed hands and where, sitting on a server that belongs to somebody. — John Drake, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026

The systems sit in standard server racks, drawing routine power with no specialized environmental controls required. — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 21 July 2026

Syers said while speaking with your server, confirm the restaurant does not source its lettuce from a producer that has been involved in the outbreak investigation. — Mason Leib, ABC News, 21 July 2026

Gartner analyst Kevin Knox said that AMD is currently the company to beat in enterprise AI server CPUs. — Kif Leswing, CNBC, 21 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English server, servere, from serven "to serve entry 1" + -er, -ere -er entry 2

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing server

• ad server
• altar server
• blade server

Rhymes for server

• fervor
• fervour
• observer
• preserver

Kids Definition

server

noun

serv·​er ˈsər-vər 

1

: a person who serves food or drink

2

: the player who puts a ball in play

3

: something (as a tray) used in serving food or drink

4

: a computer in a network that is used to provide services (as access to files or the delivery of email) to other computers