Synonyms of serve

serve

verb

ˈsərv 

1

as in to attend

to be a servant for

he served his master faithfully for 20 years

Synonyms & Similar Words

• attend
• work (for)
• wait upon
• wait on
• slave (for)
• dance attendance (upon)
• tend (to)
• minister (to)

2

as in to suffice

to be enough

they made the pasta serve for eight guests

Synonyms & Similar Words

• suffice
• do
• satisfy
• suit
• answer
• quench
• content
• satiate
• sate
• assuage

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

• suffice
• do
• fit
• suit
• satisfy
• befit
• go
• fit the bill
• fill the bill
• work
• beseem
• function

4

as in to treat

to behave toward in a stated way

my parents served me well in preparing me for life

Synonyms & Similar Words

• treat
• handle
• use
• be (to)
• deal (with)
• act (toward)
• regard
• consider
• respond (to)
• view
• react (to)
• do by
• engage (with)
• rate
• reckon
• esteem

5

as in to act

to have a certain purpose

the harsh punishment served to teach everyone a lesson

Synonyms & Similar Words

• act
• function
• work
• perform
• operate
• manage
• run
• regulate
• handle
• guide
• administer
• control
• carry on
• direct
• supervise
• oversee

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

• benefit
• help
• avail
• profit
• assist
• advantage
• aid
• improve
• succeed
• work (for)
• satisfy
• please
• better
• bless
• gratify
• content
• delight
• gladden

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• hinder
• impede
• hurt
• impair
• injure
• harm
• damage
• distress
• upset
• afflict

Examples of serve in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Everything was accurate, even the song that was being sung when the bomb dropped, plus the food being served, the band, the band leader — Snakehips Johnson, who was an openly gay Black guy living with some sort of very rich Lord. —Alex Ritman, Variety, 8 Oct. 2024

Bahi served as senior liaison in the Adams administration's community affairs until his resignation on Monday. —Aaron Katersky, ABC News, 8 Oct. 2024

Clarkson at the time served as one of NBC’s Olympic commentators alongside Peyton Manning and Mike Tirico, and was seen on the broadcast getting choked up while reacting to Dion’s performance. —Alli Rosenbloom, CNN, 8 Oct. 2024

Jones served 29 years of active military service, including deployments to Iraq and Kuwait in addition to time leading NATO's Joint Warfare Centre in Norway. —Alex Thomas, arkansasonline.com, 8 Oct. 2024