(sports) a stroke that puts the ball in play; "his powerful serves won the game"
put the ball into play; "It was Agassi's turn to serve"
do duty or hold offices; serve in a specific function; "He served as head of the department for three years"; "She served in Congress for two terms"
provide (usually but not necessarily food); "We serve meals for the homeless"; "She dished out the soup at 8 P.M."; "The entertainers served up a lively show"
help to some food; help with food or drink; "I served him three times, and after that he helped himself"
mate with; "male animals serve the females for breeding purposes"
deliver a warrant or summons to someone; "He was processed by the sheriff"
do military service; "She served in Vietnam"; "My sons never served, because they are short-sighted"
work for or be a servant to; "May I serve you?"; "She attends the old lady in the wheelchair"; "Can you wait on our table, please?"; "Is a salesperson assisting you?"; "The minister served the King for many years"
devote (part of) one's life or efforts to, as of countries, institutions, or ideas; "She served the art of music"; "He served the church"; "serve the country"
contribute or conduce to; "The scandal served to increase his popularity"
promote, benefit, or be useful or beneficial to; "Art serves commerce"; "Their interests are served"; "The lake serves recreation"; "The President's wisdom has served the country well"
serve a purpose, role, or function; "The tree stump serves as a table"; "The female students served as a control group"; "This table would serve very well"; "His freedom served him well"; "The table functions as a desk"
spend time in prison or in a labor camp; "He did six years for embezzlement"
support oneself; "he could barely exist on such a low wage"; "Can you live on $2000 a month in New York City?"; "Many people in the world have to subsist on $1 a day"
the location on a baseball field where the shortstop is stationed
tending to crumble or break into flakes due to a large amount of shortening; "shortbread is a short crumbly cookie"; "a short flaky pie crust"
(primarily spatial sense) having little length or lacking in length; "short skirts"; "short hair"; "the board was a foot short"; "a short toss"
primarily temporal sense; indicating or being or seeming to be limited in duration; "a short life"; "a short flight"; "a short holiday"; "a short story"; "only a few short months"
of speech sounds or syllables of relatively short duration; "the English vowel sounds in `pat', `pet', `pit', `pot', putt' are short"
not holding securities or commodities that one sells in expectation of a fall in prices; "a short sale"; "short in cotton"
lacking foresight or scope; "a short view of the problem"; "shortsighted policies"; "shortsighted critics derided the plan"; "myopic thinking"
low in stature; not tall; "he was short and stocky"; "short in stature"; "a short smokestack"
at a disadvantage; "I was caught short"
so as to interrupt; "She took him up short before he could continue"
at some point or distance before a goal is reached; "he fell short of our expectations"
clean across; "the car's axle snapped short"
without possessing something at the time it is contractually sold; "he made his fortune by selling short just before the crash"
a mishap caused by something suddenly falling down or caving in
an abrupt failure of function or health
lose significance, effectiveness, or value; "The school system is collapsing"; "The stock market collapsed"
break down, literally or metaphorically; "The wall collapsed"; "The business collapsed"; "The dam broke"; "The roof collapsed"; "The wall gave in"; "The roof finally gave under the weight of the ice"
cause to burst; "The ice broke the pipe"
fold or close up; "fold up your umbrella"; "collapse the music stand"