serving 1 of 3

adjective

Definition of servingnext
as in producing

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

serving

2 of 3

noun

as in dinner

Related Words

serving

3 of 3

verb

present participle of serve
1
as in attending
to be a servant for he served his master faithfully for 20 years

Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in sufficing
to be enough they made the pasta serve for eight guests

Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in doing
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
4
as in treating
to behave toward in a stated way my parents served me well in preparing me for life

Synonyms & Similar Words
5
as in acting
to have a certain purpose the harsh punishment served to teach everyone a lesson

Synonyms & Similar Words
6
as in benefiting
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

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 serving
Adjective
But for the vast majority of everyday cooking tasks—stirring, folding, sautéing, serving—high-quality silicone outperforms the competition on the merits that matter most. — Jamie Thilman, Bon Appetit Magazine, 20 Apr. 2026
Noun
While nuance and 21st century thinking are about as complementary as the ingredients in a serving of lobster ice cream, two seemingly contradictory statements can still be true at the same exact time. — Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 14 Aug. 2026 Plus, a serving of this pudding is roughly equivalent to the protein in two eggs. — Emma Laperruque, Bon Appetit Magazine, 27 July 2026
Verb
The fight revolves around a one-mile stretch of Forest Lawn Drive — a commuter route linking the Valley and Hollywood — and the main road serving Forest Lawn-Hollywood Hills and Mount Sinai Memorial Park. — Los Angeles Times, 21 Aug. 2026 Mortimer’s Marina offers boat services, winter storage and an on-site café serving smoothies, coffees and ice creams throughout the summer. — Connor Sturges, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for serving
Recent Examples of Synonyms for serving
  1. producing
  2. dinner
  3. attending
  4. doing
  5. befitting
  6. treating
  7. acting
  8. benefiting
Adjective
  • It was announced shortly thereafter that Amazon and Sony, which is co-producing, were recasting the part.
    — Joe Otterson, Variety, 20 Aug. 2026
  • The series is produced by Jason Bowers and Jacob Mosler, World Within’s COO, with Radhika Womack co-producing.
    — Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of producing
Noun
  • With an average of 55 tostadas coming out of this kitchen every dinner service, that’s around 4 lbs.
    — Beth Rankin, Denver Post, 25 Aug. 2026
  • Prosecutors say the former labor and delivery nurse planned the killings and contrived to get her husband out of the house by sending him to pick up medicine for one of their children and dinner for the family.
    — Michael Casey, Fortune, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of dinner
Verb
  • For creators, attending a Grand Slam can signal something to their audiences beyond an interest in tennis; for brands, the appeal lies partly in associating themselves with that cachet.
    — Jessica Schiffer, Vogue, 25 Aug. 2026
  • News first leaked that Cohen would be making another Ali G project in July and he was spotted in character attending Wimbledon.
    — James Hibberd, HollywoodReporter, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of attending
Verb
  • While doing so has helped millions of individuals access the power of electronics, the shrinking size of transistors is presenting problems at mass manufacturing scales.
    — Ameya Paleja, Interesting Engineering, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Alicia McCalla, 56, a fiction writer who has been doing voice work for five years out of her home in Atlanta, decided to ignore union suggestions and clone her voice.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of doing
Verb
  • Kimbrel’s late-career journey has been long and almost confounding — not befitting a superstar of his quality.
    — Sam Blum, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2026
  • Devers performed at a level befitting a nearly $30-million player, posting an OPS+ of 126 in 2023 and 142 in 2024.
    — Dan Freedman, Forbes.com, 1 Aug. 2026
Definition of befitting
Verb
  • While safety and code compliance matter, treating high-profile participants with escalating six-figure penalties risks chilling the very partners that amplify San Diego’s largest annual economic event.
    — U T Readers, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Aug. 2026
  • What’s new is how quickly the beverage industry is treating it as a category of its own, and how many consumers are buying in.
    — Hanna Wickes, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of treating
Verb
  • On May 15, the EKL learned that scammers, acting through their chief accountant, defrauded their Swedbank and SEB bank accounts of nearly $800,000 in government subsidies via an elaborate scheme disguised as salary payments.
    — Devorah Lauter, ARTnews.com, 24 Aug. 2026
  • Instead of law enforcement, policing shifts to violent secure against mathematical possibility by acting against living humans now.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of acting
Verb
  • Countries not initially targeted by Monday’s penalties but engaging in economic activity benefiting Iran will be given time to cut ties before penalties are imposed.
    — Christian Datoc, The Washington Examiner, 24 Aug. 2026
  • Bitcoin and gold shot higher this week, with both getting a boost from some frantic action surrounding the bond market, and the cryptocurrency also benefiting from activity in Washington.
    — Michelle Chapman, Fortune, 23 Aug. 2026
Definition of benefiting

Browse Nearby Words

servility
serving
servings
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Serving.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/serving. Accessed 28 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of cogent

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Aug. 28

Why do we say 'break a leg'?
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
skateboard-dog-hat
Wordmaxxing Slang Quiz Give your vocabulary a glow up by getting sendy w...
See All