Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “self-serve” come from?

self-serve (English) comes from English serve, from French servir, from German servieren, from Italian servire, from Spanish servir, from Latin serviō, from Latin servus, from Proto-Italic serwos — to flow; to guard; to bind, to tie together.

self-serve (English): Describing a facility in which the customer does...

Definitions

  1. Describing a facility in which the customer does...

Ancestry of “self-serve”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishserveAn act of putting the ball or shuttlecock in play...
2Frenchservirto serve; to be used for; to be useful for...
3GermanservierenTo serve ; to wait
4Italianservireto serve; to need; to plate
5Spanishservirto serve; to be of use, to be good for; to help...
6Latinserviō—
7Latinservusa servant; a serf; a slave
8Proto-Italicserwosguardian
9Proto-Indo-Europeanser-wo-sguardian
10Proto-Indo-Europeanser-to flow; to guard; to bind, to tie together
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ser- →