serves

present tense third-person singular of serve
1
as in works (for)
to be a servant for he served his master faithfully for 20 years

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

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3
as in does
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
5
as in acts
to have a certain purpose the harsh punishment served to teach everyone a lesson

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6
as in benefits
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 serves Billboard’s Friday Music Guide serves as a handy guide to this Friday’s most essential releases — the key music that everyone will be talking about today, and that will be dominating playlists this weekend and beyond. Andrew Unterberger, Billboard, 10 Oct. 2025 On the West Coast, the cast of Pitch Perfect reunites for a photo, while pregnant Cardi B serves face. Lex Goldstein, PEOPLE, 10 Oct. 2025 Butchard, the creator, serves as lead writer, with Robbie O’Neill writing a further episode. Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 10 Oct. 2025 This number refers to one of over 45 shapes developed by CAPX and serves as the foundation of their standardized fit system used across brands and industries. Angela Velasquez, Sourcing Journal, 10 Oct. 2025 Breaking from a grid that serves one-fifth of Americans, though, would be costly and difficult. Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 10 Oct. 2025 And likewise, Social Security serves many people with disabilities. Ashley Lopez, NPR, 10 Oct. 2025 Now, more than ever, social media serves as a critical entry point for hoards of new fans. Ben Pickman, New York Times, 10 Oct. 2025 With her during an interview were chief executive officer Jean-Baptiste Sassine, who is also her husband; her cousin Didier Cherqui, the director of creation, and Aurélie Darmon, who serves as chief marketing officer. Lily Templeton, Footwear News, 3 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for serves
Verb
  • And, if identity suffices in defining the art work, what else about it is overlooked along that way?
    Lauren Michele Jackson, New Yorker, 5 Oct. 2025
  • But today, the Attention Economy no longer suffices.
    Rajiv Shesh, Forbes.com, 17 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Rarely does a 29-page scholarly paper merit the attention of top-level executives, but every business leader should be familiar with a recent study from OpenAI.
    Geoff Colvin, Fortune, 10 Oct. 2025
  • Another big sales behemoth, Walmart also does quite a bit to maintain discounts competitive with Prime Day deals across all categories.
    Melissa Knific, Bon Appetit Magazine, 9 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • The statutory language in Colorado’s conversion therapy law treats sexuality and gender identity as equally protected, parallel characteristics.
    Mia Cathell, The Washington Examiner, 6 Oct. 2025
  • In the next scene, Ed treats his first fan—his sometime girlfriend Adeline Watkins—to the spectacle of a dead, nude woman, eviscerated and strung up like a carcass in a slaughterhouse.
    Judy Berman, Time, 6 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • When Swift acts in a way that is seemingly out of character, audiences feel cheated.
    Alyssa Goldberg, USA Today, 6 Oct. 2025
  • Restraint and classic elements can go a long way in avoiding a bathroom that acts like a roll call of the decade’s best (or worst) trends.
    Patricia Shannon, Southern Living, 5 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • The tournament benefits GiGi’s Playhouse, a nonprofit that provides free educational, therapeutic and career programs for folks of all ages with Down syndrome.
    Linda Mcintosh, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Oct. 2025
  • In 2025, his administration raised the state and local tax (SALT) deduction cap from $10,000 to $40,000—a move that disproportionately benefits upper-income households in high-tax states like California and New York.
    Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Janina Cruz, a sophomore at Waukesha West High School whose brother attends Hawthorne, said many Hispanic families at Hawthorne were unaware of the proposals and don't know how to use email or the district's student information system.
    Alec Johnson, jsonline.com, 10 Oct. 2025
  • The scenes with Alex and Tess' sons, for instance, were shot at the same school Cooper's 8-year-old daughter, Lea, attends.
    Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 10 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Weather sealing keeps it safe in tough conditions, and the autofocus system handles fast-moving subjects with ease.
    Jade Chung-Lee, PC Magazine, 8 Oct. 2025
  • Fremantle handles international production and distribution.
    Leo Barraclough, Variety, 8 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • That has contributed to a complete supply chain ecosystem that functions efficiently, a trait required in the manufacturing of semiconductors.
    John Liu, CNN Money, 1 Oct. 2025
  • One of its most recent iterations, the Supersonic Nural, comes outfitted with a groundbreaking Wave + Curl hair diffuser that functions two ways.
    Stacia Datskovska, Footwear News, 26 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Serves.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/serves. Accessed 14 Oct. 2025.

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