serve

Definition of servenext
1
as in to attend
to be a servant for he served his master faithfully for 20 years

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2
as in to suffice
to be enough they made the pasta serve for eight guests

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3
as in to do
to be fitting or proper those old riding boots will serve for now, but you'll need newer ones for the horse show

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4
as in to treat
to behave toward in a stated way my parents served me well in preparing me for life

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5
as in to act
to have a certain purpose the harsh punishment served to teach everyone a lesson

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6
as in to benefit
to provide with something useful or desirable an excellent college that served her with the skills necessary to make it in today's job market

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of serve With a focus on combating prostitution, pimping, pandering, and human trafficking impacting the downtown area, officers with the San Bernardino Police Department served a search warrant on April 29 at the motel. Zach Boetto, CBS News, 2 May 2026 The number of cafes run by six major chains that serve Yemeni-style drinks grew 50% last year to 136, according to Technomic, a restaurant industry consulting company. ABC News, 2 May 2026 Friends, family and colleagues remembered a man of faith who made a career of serving others. Greg Bluestein, AJC.com, 2 May 2026 Court filings describe him as one of the longest-serving principals in the city school system. John Annese, New York Daily News, 2 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for serve
Recent Examples of Synonyms for serve
Verb
  • Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent hosted the meeting, which was also attended by Vice President JD Vance and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles.
    Christopher Cann, USA Today, 30 Apr. 2026
  • His children attend private schools.
    Ed Caesar, New Yorker, 30 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • And, against many a playoff team, that would probably suffice.
    Tony Jones, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2026
  • Cavina says a light tap on the nose while working with lion cubs would suffice when things started to go south.
    Tabitha Parent, PEOPLE, 20 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • The governor’s comments underscored the limited power of the commission, which could not issue subpoenas, file charges or compel anyone to do anything.
    Olivia Olander, Chicago Tribune, 1 May 2026
  • The New York Knicks emphatically did so with a scoreline that should be reserved for horror movies.
    Dan Santaromita, New York Times, 1 May 2026
Verb
  • Medics treated the victims at the scene, while responding officers continued to investigate.
    Alexa Ashwell, Baltimore Sun, 1 May 2026
  • The American startup’s chatbots are banned in mainland China, and Goldman’s move suggests US AI firms could increasingly treat Hong Kong as off-limits as well, the Financial Times reported.
    Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, semafor.com, 30 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • As the Moon moves into Sagittarius, your 12th House of Reflection becomes more active, pulling you inward to process before acting.
    Tarot.com, Hartford Courant, 3 May 2026
  • Charles Ritchie estimated that there are up to 250 members of the main club and 100 to 200 more people involved in sections like German language schools or acting or dancing groups that don’t require full membership.
    Graham Womack May 2, Sacbee.com, 2 May 2026
Verb
  • Altman pitched the conversion as critical to securing the vast amount of funding OpenAI needs to fulfill its mission of creating artificial general intelligence — or AGI — that will benefit humanity.
    Bloomberg, Mercury News, 27 Apr. 2026
  • The case centers on Musk’s claim that OpenAI, Altman and Microsoft betrayed OpenAI's original mission as a nonprofit to benefit humanity by forming a for-profit entity in March 2019, 13 months after Musk left the OpenAI board.
    Deepa Seetharaman, USA Today, 27 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • The metaphor perfectly fits the 6-foot-5 Jordan, who casts an imposing figure on the mound.
    Patrick Z. McGavin, Chicago Tribune, 30 Apr. 2026
  • The roomy interior easily fits travel essentials—think a camera, wallet, passport, portable charger, phone, and more—without feeling bulky.
    Rosie Marder, Travel + Leisure, 29 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • The recruitment has been part of that — Leipzig bought well and sold the players who needed to leave — but Werner has handled a young squad particularly well, minimising the volatility that was such a feature of their football last season.
    Sebastian Stafford-Bloor, New York Times, 27 Apr. 2026
  • The lieutenant who handled his Skelly conference wrote that Webster accepted full responsibility for his actions and apologized.
    Kelly Davis, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Apr. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Serve.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/serve. Accessed 3 May. 2026.

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