self-interest en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- (US) audio
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *swé? Proto-Indo-European *selbʰ-der. Proto-Germanic *selbaz Old English self Old English self- Middle English self- English self- English interest English self-interest From self- + interest.
Meanings
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(countable, uncountable) One's personal interest or advantage, especially when pursued without regard for others.
Corruption becomes fatal when those in power are no longer able to distinguish the difference between self-interest and the national interest.
2022 July 27, Charles Hugh Smith, There Won't Be Any Winners Because The Status Quo Is Corrupt Everywhere:Government standards of decency and honesty were quite low, and decision-makers were tainted with self-interest and corruption at the very highest level.
2023 March 8, Howard Johnston, “Was Marples the real railway wrecker?”, in RAIL, number 978, page 52:I cannot abandon my husband for the sake of self-interest and personal gain.
And so he reasoned until the first generous impulse to proclaim the truth and relinquish his titles and his estates to their rightful owner was forgotten beneath the mass of sophistries which self-interest had advanced.
1913, Edgar Rice Burroughs, The Return of Tarzan, New York: Ballantine Books, published 1963, page 99:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| self-interests | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Coordinates
public interest · enlightened self-interest
Deriveds
broad self-interest · enlightened self-interest · naked self-interest · narrow self-interest · economic self-interest
Hypernyms
Relateds
self-interestedness · law of the jungle · self-interested
Synonyms
Translations (23)
sv egenintresse (personal interest) · da egeninteresse (personal interest) · nn eigeninteresse (personal interest) · he אינטרס עצמי (personal interest) · pt interesseirismo (personal interest) · cmn 自利 (personal interest) · cmn 私心 (personal interest) · pl własna korzyść (personal interest) · ru своекоры́стие (personal interest) · pl własny interes (personal interest) · da selvinteresse (personal interest) · el ιδιοτέλεια (personal interest) · tr öz çıkar (personal interest) · nb egeninteresse (personal interest) · pa ਸ੍ਵਾਰਥ (personal interest) · de Eigennutz (personal interest) · cmn 利己主義 /利己主义 (personal interest) · de Eigeninteresse (personal interest) · vi tư lợi (personal interest) · nb eigeninteresse (personal interest) · sv egennytta (personal interest) · fi oma etu (personal interest) · da egennytte (personal interest)