Talk:serve

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Verbal definitions[edit]

The pletora of longworded definitions make this article extremely cumbersome. Furthermore is looks like an incomplete merger of 2 separate articles...

Prime candidates for merging are:

  • 1 & 17 and possibly 18
    • To work for; to labor in behalf of; to exert one's self continuously or statedly for the benefit of; to do service for; to be in the employment of, as an inferior, domestic, serf, slave, hired assistant, official helper, etc.; specifically, in a religious sense, to obey and worship.
    • To be a servant or a slave; to be employed in labor or other business for another; to be in subjection or bondage; to render menial service.
    • To perform domestic offices; to be occupied with household affairs; to prepare and dish up food, etc.
  • 6 & 19:
    • To perform the duties belonging to, or required in or for; hence, to be of use to; as, a curate may serve two churches; to serve one's country.
    • To be in service; to do duty; to discharge the requirements of an office or employment. Specifically, to act in the public service, as a soldier, seaman. etc.
  • 11 & 12
    • To bring to notice, deliver, or execute, either actually or constructively, in such manner as the law requires; as, to serve a summons.
    • To make legal service opon (a person named in a writ, summons, etc.); as, to serve a witness with a subpeona.

And possibly more...--sanna 17:40, 12 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

The following discussion has been moved from Wiktionary:Requests for deletion.

This discussion is no longer live and is left here as an archive. Please do not modify this conversation, but feel free to discuss its conclusions.

serve[edit]

Rfd-redundant: (intransitive) To be in service; to do duty; to discharge the requirements of an office or employment. Specifically, to act in the public service, as a soldier, seaman. etc.

Just a few lines up, we have the sense "(transitive) To perform the duties belonging to, or required in or for; hence, to be of use to." The usexes given suggest that these two are the same. It can probably be used both in intransitive and transitive forms. -- Prince Kassad 10:38, 2 March 2011 (UTC)[reply]

I agree, and this is not the only redundancy in the entry. Actually, somebody has posted a request for clean-up of the whole. Who would want to give it a try? --Hekaheka 14:08, 2 March 2011 (UTC)[reply]
Keep. Unabridged dictionaries rarely combine transitive and intransitive uses into a single sense, except for rare or obsolete senses. This is a typical Websters 1913 entry with what Visviva called "cobwebs" (semicolons, many circumlocutions for the same sense, mini-usexes introduced by "as" in the sense line, dashes}. User:Visviva/Cobwebs has four lists. DCDuring TALK 22:54, 2 March 2011 (UTC)[reply]


RFD discussion: July–October 2020[edit]

The following information passed a request for deletion (permalink).

This discussion is no longer live and is left here as an archive. Please do not modify this conversation, but feel free to discuss its conclusions.

Rfd-sense: To provide crack cocaine (to), usually by selling, dealing, or distributing.

(Moved from RfV.)

This doesn't look like it's at all specific to crack cocaine, and I don't see how it's a novel use. grendel|khan 22:36, 4 July 2020 (UTC)[reply]

If you were being served cocaine in a restaurant it would be the same as being served food. But being "served" something to mean buying drugs does seem fairly novel to me. This should be at RFD though. DTLHS (talk) 22:50, 4 July 2020 (UTC)[reply]
@DTLHS: Oh, it's for deletion of senses as well! I've moved the discussion. (Maybe we also need a sense for "to provide an product or object", in a non-food sense? Is that valid? I've seen "serving hot takes", for example.) grendel|khan 16:23, 5 July 2020 (UTC)[reply]
In drug culture, if someone asks "Do they serve at that house?" or "the lady over there serves" it means they sell or she sells crack cocaine. It's intalk among those who are affiliated with it--it's common to hear serve used as a euphemism in place of sell. Leasnam (talk) 04:58, 6 July 2020 (UTC)[reply]
Just to follow up a bit, one doesn't hear this usage with marijuana on the street, or heroin, or other drugs, it's specific only to crack cocaine. Leasnam (talk) 05:09, 6 July 2020 (UTC)[reply]
Hm, OK. It seems like we should (a) still update sense 1 to mention provision with producst and not just services, regardless (as one can serve someone food, drink, etc), (b) probably make this crack sense (if kept) a subsense of sense 1, and then (c) find quotations of the use described above, so we can judge whether they represent a distinct sense. - -sche (discuss) 21:54, 7 July 2020 (UTC)[reply]

I found these:

  • 2000, West's Southern Reporter, page 891:
    During direct examination, he testified that his long-time friend, Darryl Jenkins, used crack cocaine and often sold that drug […] He did confirm, however, that he had examined the contents of the bag and knew that there was enough to “serve” at least fifty rocks. Further, Johnson stated that he knew the weight of the rocks based on experience because a “juggler,” […]
  • 2010, Keith Norton, Crack Spell, iUniverse (→ISBN)
    The ladies were perplexed and Judy was wondering if they could get more crack for her to smoke. “Do you think you can get some more of that,” Judy asked […] “She doesn't serve at night,” Nancy said, She continued. “But I know those lil dudes down on the corner in that grey and white house... now they got some Fire ass dope!”

- -sche (discuss) 22:00, 7 July 2020 (UTC)[reply]

When citing the West reporters it is essential to indicate the volume and series. There are literally thousands of volumes. In this case the standard citation format is approximately Brooks v. State, 762 So.2d 879 at 891 (Fla. 2000). That's volume 762 of the second series of the Southern reporter, page 891 of a decision beginning at page 879. The (Fla. 2000) means a decision of the Florida Supreme Court in 2000, which is very important to lawyers but less important to lexicographers. We need a template. Vox Sciurorum (talk) 23:15, 7 July 2020 (UTC)[reply]
Perhaps someone will provide citations demonstrating that this can be used (in the same way as in the citations above) of other drugs, in which case the sense should be reworded/expanded, but it seems like we should keep a drug sense, it does seem real and distinct / distinguishable from e.g. serving food. - -sche (discuss) 08:55, 9 July 2020 (UTC)[reply]


Possible missing senses[edit]

Chambers 1908 has transitive senses "to minister to a priest at Mass" and "to comply with". Equinox ◑ 16:08, 26 November 2023 (UTC)[reply]

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