unselfish

adjective

un·​self·​ish ˌən-ˈsel-fish How to pronounce unselfish (audio)
Synonyms of unselfishnext
: not selfish : generous
unselfishly adverb
unselfishness noun

Synonyms

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Examples of unselfish in a Sentence

She's a very unselfish young woman. an unselfish man who spends much of his time helping his community
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
In the final stages, Gibbs-White’s unselfish attitude was underlined by Forest’s fourth goal. — Paul Taylor, The Athletic, 17 Mar. 2025 The Warriors’ offensive philosophy is predicated on ball movement and unselfish play. — Mark Lasota, Forbes, 7 Mar. 2025 Her unfussy, unselfish industry regularly inspires murmurs of applause from the crowd during home matches at Walton Hall Park, an admiration for the simpler graces. — Megan Feringa, The Athletic, 21 Feb. 2025 While the Panthers had three players in double figures and seven players score overall, Hendrix liked the fact his team was unselfish on the offensive end. — Jeff Halpern Special To The Democrat-Gazette, arkansasonline.com, 8 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for unselfish

Word History

First Known Use

1698, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of unselfish was in 1698

Rhymes for unselfish

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Browse Nearby Words

unselfish
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Cite this Entry

“Unselfish.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unselfish. Accessed 23 Mar. 2025.

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Kids Definition

unselfish

adjective
un·​self·​ish ˌən-ˈsel-fish How to pronounce unselfish (audio)
ˈən-
: not selfish : generous
unselfishly adverb
unselfishness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on unselfish

Nglish: Translation of unselfish for Spanish Speakers

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