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Etymology data from Wiktionary via Wiktextract (CC BY-SA 4.0). Chinese character data from the 說文解字, the Taiwan MOE 國語辭典簡編本 (CC BY-ND 3.0 TW) and HSK/TOCFL lists.

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English

service

/ˈsɜː.vɪs/
An act of being of assistance to someone.

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    • derived
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    • meaning component
    • sound component
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    Origin

    Etymology 1

    From Middle English servise, from Old English serfis, from Old French servise (French service), from the verb servir, from Latin servitium (compare Portuguese serviço, Italian servizio, Norman sèrvice, Spanish servicio), from servus (“servant; serf; slave”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ser-wo-s (“guardian”), possibly from *ser- (“watch over, protect”). Displaced native Old English þeġnung.

    Etymology 2

    Properly, the tree that bears sorb fruit, from Middle English serves, plural of serve (“sorb apple, serviceberry”), from Old English syrfe, from Vulgar Latin *sorbea, from Latin sorbus (“service tree”). See sorb.

    From Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.

    Lineage

    • inheritedMiddle Englishservise
      • inheritedOld Englishserfis
        • borrowedOld Frenchservise
          • borrowedLatinservitium
            • partLatinservus “slave, serf, servant”
              • inheritedProto-Italic*serwos
                • derivedProto-Indo-European*ser- “to watch over, protect”
                  • derivedProto-Indo-European*h₃reǵ- “to straighten”
            • partLatin-itia “noun suffix denoting condition”
              • derivedLatin-ia “abstract noun suffix”
                • derivedLatin-ius
                  • derivedOld Latin-ios
                • derivedAncient Greek-ῐᾰ “-y”
                  • derivedProto-Indo-European*-ih₂
    • inheritedMiddle Englishserves
      • inheritedOld Englishsyrfe
        • derivedVulgar Latin*sorbea
          • derivedLatinsorbus “service tree”

    Related: French service, Portuguese serviço, Italian servizio, Norman sèrvice, Spanish servicio, Old English þeġnung

    Meanings

    noun
    1. An act of being of assistance to someone.
    2. The state of being subordinate to or employed by an individual or group.
    3. Work as a member of the military.
    4. The military.
    5. The practice of providing assistance as economic activity.
    6. Synonym of utility (“commodity provided on a continuous basis by a physical infrastructure network, such as electricity, water supply or sewerage”).
    verb
    1. To serve.
    2. To perform maintenance.
    3. To supply (media outlets) with press releases etc.
    4. To make a repayment or pay interest (on a debt).
    5. To inseminate through sexual intercourse.
    6. To perform a sexual act upon.

    Sources

    • Wiktionary (via Wiktextract / kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0
    • Wiktionary: service