English
Etymology
Proto-Indo-European *lewHs-der. English selfless
From self + -less.
Pronunciation
Adjective
selfless (comparative more selfless, superlative most selfless)
- Having, exhibiting or motivated by no concern for oneself but for others; unselfish.
In a selfless act of gratitude for saving his mother's life, Peter committed to giving money to his local breast cancer charity each year for the rest of his life.
2011 October 3, Natalie Angier, “The Pathological Altruist Gives Till Someone Hurts”, in The New York Times[1]:Because a certain degree of selfless behavior is essential to the smooth performance of any human group, selflessness run amok can crop up in political contexts.
Derived terms
Translations
having, exhibiting or motivated by no concern for oneself; unselfish
- Arabic: غَيْرِيّ (ḡayriyy), إِيثَارِيّ (ʔīṯāriyy)
- Belarusian: самаадда́ны (samaaddány), самаахвя́рны (samaaxvjárny), бескарысто́ўны (bjeskarystówny), некары́слівы (njekarýslivy)
- Bulgarian: самоотве́ржен (bg) (samootvéržen), безкори́стен (bg) (bezkorísten), самоотве́ржен (bg) (samootvéržen), себеотрицателен (bg) (sebeotricatelen)
- Chinese:
- Mandarin: 無私 / 无私 (zh) (wúsī), 公而忘私 (zh) (gōng'érwàngsī), 忘我的 (zh) (wàngwǒ de)
- Czech: obětavý, nesobecký
- Esperanto: egoisma
- Finnish: epäitsekäs (fi), pyyteetön (fi)
- French: dévoué (fr), altruiste (fr)
- Georgian: თავდაუზოგავი (tavdauzogavi), თავდადებული (tavdadebuli)
- German: selbstlos (de), uneigennützig (de)
- Greek: ανιδιοτελής (el) (anidiotelís), αφίλαυτος (afílaftos), φιλάλληλος (el) (filállilos), αλτρουιστής (el) (altrouistís)
- Hungarian: önzetlen (hu)
- Italian: altruista (it), altruistico (it), disinteressato (it)
- Japanese: 無私無欲の (むしむよくの, mushimuyoku no)
- Korean: 이타적(利他的) (itajeok), 리타적(利他的) (ritajeok) (North Korea), 사심 없는 (sasim eomneun)
- Kyrgyz: өзгөчүл (özgöcül)
- Macedonian: несебичен (nesebičen)
- Manx: neuhondagh
- Polish: ofiarny (pl), bezinteresowny (pl)
- Portuguese: altruísta (pt), desinteressado (pt) m
- Romanian: dezinteresat (ro)
- Russian: самоотве́рженный (ru) (samootvéržennyj), бескоры́стный (ru) (beskorýstnyj)
- Slovak: obetavý, nesebecký
- Spanish: desinteresado (es), abnegado (es), altruista (es)
- Swedish: osjälvisk (sv)
- Tamil: தன்னலமற்ற (taṉṉalamaṟṟa)
- Turkish: fedakâr (tr), özgecil (tr), özverili (tr)
- Ukrainian: самові́дданий (samovíddanyj), безкори́сливий (uk) (bezkorýslyvyj), некори́сливий (nekorýslyvyj)
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See also