selfishadj.n.

Brit.

/ˈsɛlfɪʃ/, U.S.

/ˈsɛlfɪʃ/

Forms: 1600s selfeish, 1600s seluish, 1600s selvish, 1600s– selfish; also Scottish 1900s selfitsh (Shetland).

Origin: Formed within English, by derivation. Etymons: self n., -ish suffix¹.

Etymology: < self n. + -ish suffix¹.

A. adj.

a. Concerned chiefly with one's own advantage or welfare, to the exclusion of consideration for others; self-centred. Also of a feeling, quality, motive, etc.: characterized by or exhibiting a self-centred concern with one's own advantage or welfare.

ΘΚΠ

society > morality > moral evil > evil nature or character > lack of magnanimity or noble-mindedness > self-interest > [adjective] > selfish

self-respecting1597

selfish1628

selfful1640

selfy1643

sellie1825

kiasu1990

1628 W. Struther Christian Observ. & Resol. lii. 132 So selvish in this Selfe, that it accompteth euen God to be a stranger.

1648 T. Hill Olive Branch 26 When you are so selfish in your designs and undertakings, and so far prefer your self-ends before the Publique.

1656 H. Jeanes Mixture Scholasticall Divinity 14 It is a selvish fear, proceeding from an idolatrous, and adulterous love of ourselves.

1753 S. Johnson Adventurer No. 62. ⁋5 Want makes almost every man selfish.

1794 R. B. Sheridan Duenna (new ed.) i. 24 Any where to avoid the selfish violence of my mother-in-law.

1839 C. Dickens Nicholas Nickleby xiv. 121 ‘Well; but what's to become of me?’ urged the selfish man.

1863 ‘G. Eliot’ Romola II. v. 50 The subjection of selfish interests to the general good.

c1933 D. Thomas Coll. Lett. (1987) 18 Leave London & come to Neath. That is particularly bad advice, I'm sure, but it is written from purely selfish motives—from a desire to see you.

1975 R. Davies World of Wonders (1977) i. vii. 74 I have never met anyone in my life who was so bleakly and unconsciously selfish as Willard.

2008 Vanity Fair Nov. 130/2 I find insupportable the prospect that the animal kingdom will precede us into extinction, the innocent victims of our selfish stupidity.

b. Designating a theory of ethics in which regard for personal interest is considered to be the primary motive for human action. Also occasionally: designating a person who supports such a theory. Cf. selfism n.Originally used with depreciative connotations by opponents of the concept.In quot. 1663 used to describe Thomas Hobbes, with reference to his exposition of these ideas in Leviathan (1651).

ΘΚΠ

the mind > mental capacity > philosophy > moral philosophy > hedonism > [adjective] > of or supporting doctrines related to hedonism

selfish1751

subjectivistic1854

energistic1896

1663 W. Lucy Observ. Errours Hobbes Leviathan xxiii. 178 To use the Phrase of the time, this Gent. [sc. Hobbes] is very selfish.]

1751 D. Hume Enq. Princ. Morals ii. 15 The most obvious Objection to the selfish Hypothesis, is, that being contrary to common Feeling..there is requir'd the highest Stretch of Philosophy to establish so extraordinary a Paradox.

1771 J. Ussher Introd. Theory Human Mind i. 30 Equally exceptionable, is the selfish philosopher's system, by which he attributes the various effects of the human inclinations..to the love of pleasure and hatred of pain.

1844 R. Hildreth Theory of Morals i. i. 30 All the partisans of the Selfish theory of morals..unite to assure us, that the only conceivable motive to act, which a man can have, is the promotion of his own happiness.

1868 A. Bain Mental & Moral Sci. 638 The Epicurean, or Selfish, System.

1906 Law Q. Rev. July 313 The critics of the ‘selfish philosophy’, as many of its opponents used to call Utilitarianism, might be recommended to read these letters.

1989 D. F. Norton in R. J. Cavalier et al. Ethics in Hist. Western Philos. vi. 191 The selfish theory as stated is contradicted by the facts of experience.

2014 R. Jeffery Reason & Emotion in Internat. Ethics iii. 89 Where the selfish theorists and rationalists went wrong was in assuming that all emotions can be accurately characterised as selfish.

c. Biology. Designating genetic material or a gene considered primarily as an element which tends to replicate itself through successive generations of a population, or within a genome, any effect on the organism being derivative of this tendency. Earliest and chiefly in selfish gene.In quot. 1964: designating genes for characteristics conferring benefits on particular individuals, in the context of competition within a species.The theory of the selfish gene developed by Richard Dawkins (b. 1941), British scientist and writer (cf. quot. 1976), aims to understand the evolution of organisms in terms of the gene as replicator. In genetics, the term is applied chiefly to genetic material which is perpetuated in the genome despite having no phenotypic effect.

ΚΠ

1964 W. D. Hamilton in Jrnl. Theoret. Biol. 7 48 The selfish genes for seed growth tend to waste their powers a little not only because of the assortation due to relationship but also because of the purely chance occurrence of extreme situations where gene-replicas are largely in competition with one another.]

1971 E. G. Leigh in Science 14 May 666/1 In population genetics, one encounters ‘selfish genes’ which spread by biasing the meiosis of heterozygotes in their favor.

1976 R. Dawkins Selfish Gene i. 3 Let us understand what our own selfish genes are up to, because we may then at least have the chance to upset their designs.

1979 F. Crick in Science 20 Apr. 269/1 This problem should not be confused with the related phenomenon of a particular stretch of DNA spreading within one genome, the case of ‘selfish DNA’.

2000 E. Sober Philos. of Biol. (ed. 2) iv. 109 The driving gene is an excellent example of a selfish gene, properly so-called. Its evolution requires us to abandon a strictly organismic point of view.

2014 Evolution 68 3629/2 The selfish DNA elements hypothesis focuses on the role of selfish genetic elements..that spread within the genome and increase genome size without any benefits to the organism as a whole.

2. Relating to or connected with oneself.Usually in form self-ish, and in later use frequently in inverted commas, to distinguish this sense from sense A. 1.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > kind or sort > individual character or quality > [adjective] > relating to self

selfish1835

propriate1955

1835–6 Todd's Cycl. Anat. & Physiol. I. 72/2 The sensation excited on the skin is less selfish, if we may use the term in this sense.

1899 Westm. Gaz. 3 May 3/2 To pursue this self-ish ideal.

1981 M. Csikszentmihalyi & E. Rochberg-Halton Meaning of Things iv. 104 The first [woman] seems to make her way through life alone, ordering experience in terms of her own personal goals, translating information in terms of these ‘self-ish’ needs.

2005 P. Riley in G. Cortese & A. Duszak Identity, Community, Disc. 167 Sharing our subjective ‘self-ish’ world with others is what makes us..social animals.

B. n.

With the and plural agreement. Those who are selfish; selfish people as a class.

ΚΠ

1691 R. Baxter Against Revolt to Foreign Jurisdict. i. Pref. 2 But to the selfish there are as many Religions and Ways, as sandy self-interest requireth.

1794 Anal. Rev. Dec. 337 The selfish..can only fix their eyes upon those points of the passing scene, which excite alarm for the safety of the..systems of superstition and tyranny.

1818 S. E. Ferrier Marriage II. xxi. 286 From such communings as these the selfish would have turned with indifference.

1896 Golden Rule 30 Apr. 682/2 The selfish are always asking, how shall I be rewarded?

1920 J. Erskine Democracy & Ideals i. 29 When too many citizens become anarchists, there are not enough of the conscientious to maintain an ideal for the selfish to loot.

1984 E. L. Tuveson in C. A. Patrides & J. Wittreich Apocalypse Eng. Renaissance Thought & Lit. xii. 323 A class of enlightened philosophers..would gain control of society, replacing the selfish and the ignorant.

2011 Coloradoan (Fort Collins) (Electronic ed.) 2 Aug. The selfish are those who would deny health care to fellow Americans who can't afford it.

Compounds

Forming parasynthetic adjectives, as selfish-minded, selfish-hearted, etc.

ΚΠ

1666 Bp. S. Parker Acct. Nature & Extent Divine Dominion 15 We cannot imagine him so selfish spirited as to effect it.

1683 P. Price Unequal unyoked & Equal Yoked 6 The Worldly, Earthly, Natural, Selfish-minded man is not to judge any.

1841 Era 13 June 8/3 Mr. Hume is essentially a narrow and a selfish-minded man.

1863 R. S. Hawker in C. E. Byles Life & Lett. R. S. Hawker (1905) 462 A downlooking lying selfish-hearted throng.

1914 R. O. Lawton Making of Home ii. 5 Materialism, selfish-souled, ruthless-hearted materialism, enters in as king and queen of the home.

2006 Afr. News (Nexis) 29 Nov. The human rights of the poor, elderly, women and children are violated by a few selfish-minded individuals that just want to make a quick buck.

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, January 2018; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

单词	selfish
释义	selfishadj.n. Brit. /ˈsɛlfɪʃ/, U.S. /ˈsɛlfɪʃ/ Forms: 1600s selfeish, 1600s seluish, 1600s selvish, 1600s– selfish; also Scottish 1900s selfitsh (Shetland). Origin: Formed within English, by derivation. Etymons: self n., -ish suffix¹. Etymology: < self n. + -ish suffix¹. A. adj. 1. a. Concerned chiefly with one's own advantage or welfare, to the exclusion of consideration for others; self-centred. Also of a feeling, quality, motive, etc.: characterized by or exhibiting a self-centred concern with one's own advantage or welfare. ΘΚΠ society > morality > moral evil > evil nature or character > lack of magnanimity or noble-mindedness > self-interest > [adjective] > selfish self-respecting1597 selfish1628 selfful1640 selfy1643 sellie1825 kiasu1990 1628 W. Struther Christian Observ. & Resol. lii. 132 So selvish in this Selfe, that it accompteth euen God to be a stranger. 1648 T. Hill Olive Branch 26 When you are so selfish in your designs and undertakings, and so far prefer your self-ends before the Publique. 1656 H. Jeanes Mixture Scholasticall Divinity 14 It is a selvish fear, proceeding from an idolatrous, and adulterous love of ourselves. 1753 S. Johnson Adventurer No. 62. ⁋5 Want makes almost every man selfish. 1794 R. B. Sheridan Duenna (new ed.) i. 24 Any where to avoid the selfish violence of my mother-in-law. 1839 C. Dickens Nicholas Nickleby xiv. 121 ‘Well; but what's to become of me?’ urged the selfish man. 1863 ‘G. Eliot’ Romola II. v. 50 The subjection of selfish interests to the general good. c1933 D. Thomas Coll. Lett. (1987) 18 Leave London & come to Neath. That is particularly bad advice, I'm sure, but it is written from purely selfish motives—from a desire to see you. 1975 R. Davies World of Wonders (1977) i. vii. 74 I have never met anyone in my life who was so bleakly and unconsciously selfish as Willard. 2008 Vanity Fair Nov. 130/2 I find insupportable the prospect that the animal kingdom will precede us into extinction, the innocent victims of our selfish stupidity. b. Designating a theory of ethics in which regard for personal interest is considered to be the primary motive for human action. Also occasionally: designating a person who supports such a theory. Cf. selfism n.Originally used with depreciative connotations by opponents of the concept.In quot. 1663 used to describe Thomas Hobbes, with reference to his exposition of these ideas in Leviathan (1651). ΘΚΠ the mind > mental capacity > philosophy > moral philosophy > hedonism > [adjective] > of or supporting doctrines related to hedonism selfish1751 subjectivistic1854 energistic1896 1663 W. Lucy Observ. Errours Hobbes Leviathan xxiii. 178 To use the Phrase of the time, this Gent. [sc. Hobbes] is very selfish.] 1751 D. Hume Enq. Princ. Morals ii. 15 The most obvious Objection to the selfish Hypothesis, is, that being contrary to common Feeling..there is requir'd the highest Stretch of Philosophy to establish so extraordinary a Paradox. 1771 J. Ussher Introd. Theory Human Mind i. 30 Equally exceptionable, is the selfish philosopher's system, by which he attributes the various effects of the human inclinations..to the love of pleasure and hatred of pain. 1844 R. Hildreth Theory of Morals i. i. 30 All the partisans of the Selfish theory of morals..unite to assure us, that the only conceivable motive to act, which a man can have, is the promotion of his own happiness. 1868 A. Bain Mental & Moral Sci. 638 The Epicurean, or Selfish, System. 1906 Law Q. Rev. July 313 The critics of the ‘selfish philosophy’, as many of its opponents used to call Utilitarianism, might be recommended to read these letters. 1989 D. F. Norton in R. J. Cavalier et al. Ethics in Hist. Western Philos. vi. 191 The selfish theory as stated is contradicted by the facts of experience. 2014 R. Jeffery Reason & Emotion in Internat. Ethics iii. 89 Where the selfish theorists and rationalists went wrong was in assuming that all emotions can be accurately characterised as selfish. c. Biology. Designating genetic material or a gene considered primarily as an element which tends to replicate itself through successive generations of a population, or within a genome, any effect on the organism being derivative of this tendency. Earliest and chiefly in selfish gene.In quot. 1964: designating genes for characteristics conferring benefits on particular individuals, in the context of competition within a species.The theory of the selfish gene developed by Richard Dawkins (b. 1941), British scientist and writer (cf. quot. 1976), aims to understand the evolution of organisms in terms of the gene as replicator. In genetics, the term is applied chiefly to genetic material which is perpetuated in the genome despite having no phenotypic effect. ΚΠ 1964 W. D. Hamilton in Jrnl. Theoret. Biol. 7 48 The selfish genes for seed growth tend to waste their powers a little not only because of the assortation due to relationship but also because of the purely chance occurrence of extreme situations where gene-replicas are largely in competition with one another.] 1971 E. G. Leigh in Science 14 May 666/1 In population genetics, one encounters ‘selfish genes’ which spread by biasing the meiosis of heterozygotes in their favor. 1976 R. Dawkins Selfish Gene i. 3 Let us understand what our own selfish genes are up to, because we may then at least have the chance to upset their designs. 1979 F. Crick in Science 20 Apr. 269/1 This problem should not be confused with the related phenomenon of a particular stretch of DNA spreading within one genome, the case of ‘selfish DNA’. 2000 E. Sober Philos. of Biol. (ed. 2) iv. 109 The driving gene is an excellent example of a selfish gene, properly so-called. Its evolution requires us to abandon a strictly organismic point of view. 2014 Evolution 68 3629/2 The selfish DNA elements hypothesis focuses on the role of selfish genetic elements..that spread within the genome and increase genome size without any benefits to the organism as a whole. 2. Relating to or connected with oneself.Usually in form self-ish, and in later use frequently in inverted commas, to distinguish this sense from sense A. 1. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > kind or sort > individual character or quality > [adjective] > relating to self selfish1835 propriate1955 1835–6 Todd's Cycl. Anat. & Physiol. I. 72/2 The sensation excited on the skin is less selfish, if we may use the term in this sense. 1899 Westm. Gaz. 3 May 3/2 To pursue this self-ish ideal. 1981 M. Csikszentmihalyi & E. Rochberg-Halton Meaning of Things iv. 104 The first [woman] seems to make her way through life alone, ordering experience in terms of her own personal goals, translating information in terms of these ‘self-ish’ needs. 2005 P. Riley in G. Cortese & A. Duszak Identity, Community, Disc. 167 Sharing our subjective ‘self-ish’ world with others is what makes us..social animals. B. n. With the and plural agreement. Those who are selfish; selfish people as a class. ΚΠ 1691 R. Baxter Against Revolt to Foreign Jurisdict. i. Pref. 2 But to the selfish there are as many Religions and Ways, as sandy self-interest requireth. 1794 Anal. Rev. Dec. 337 The selfish..can only fix their eyes upon those points of the passing scene, which excite alarm for the safety of the..systems of superstition and tyranny. 1818 S. E. Ferrier Marriage II. xxi. 286 From such communings as these the selfish would have turned with indifference. 1896 Golden Rule 30 Apr. 682/2 The selfish are always asking, how shall I be rewarded? 1920 J. Erskine Democracy & Ideals i. 29 When too many citizens become anarchists, there are not enough of the conscientious to maintain an ideal for the selfish to loot. 1984 E. L. Tuveson in C. A. Patrides & J. Wittreich Apocalypse Eng. Renaissance Thought & Lit. xii. 323 A class of enlightened philosophers..would gain control of society, replacing the selfish and the ignorant. 2011 Coloradoan (Fort Collins) (Electronic ed.) 2 Aug. The selfish are those who would deny health care to fellow Americans who can't afford it. Compounds Forming parasynthetic adjectives, as selfish-minded, selfish-hearted, etc. ΚΠ 1666 Bp. S. Parker Acct. Nature & Extent Divine Dominion 15 We cannot imagine him so selfish spirited as to effect it. 1683 P. Price Unequal unyoked & Equal Yoked 6 The Worldly, Earthly, Natural, Selfish-minded man is not to judge any. 1841 Era 13 June 8/3 Mr. Hume is essentially a narrow and a selfish-minded man. 1863 R. S. Hawker in C. E. Byles Life & Lett. R. S. Hawker (1905) 462 A downlooking lying selfish-hearted throng. 1914 R. O. Lawton Making of Home ii. 5 Materialism, selfish-souled, ruthless-hearted materialism, enters in as king and queen of the home. 2006 Afr. News (Nexis) 29 Nov. The human rights of the poor, elderly, women and children are violated by a few selfish-minded individuals that just want to make a quick buck. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, January 2018; most recently modified version published online June 2022). < adj.n.1628
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