I. pronunc at self I+ish or ēsh adjective
Etymology: self (III) + -ish
1.
a. : concerned excessively or exclusively with oneself : seeking or concentrating on one's own advantage, pleasure, or well-being without regard for others
if he could be proud and patriotic, so too he could be selfish and mean — Francis Parkman
a formal, greedy, selfish old gentleman — L.P.Smith
selfish ambition
b. : self-centered
the sympathy of children with those who weep is innocently selfish — G.D.Brown
2.
a. : believing or teaching that the chief motives of human action are derived from love of self
the selfish school of philosophers — William Fleming
b. : performed to benefit oneself especially in disregard of the welfare of others
a selfish act
• self·ish·ly -ə̇shlē, -li adverb
II. adjective
: being a usually repetitive sequence of nucleic acid that actively replicates within an organism but is not expressed phenotypically and serves no known function
selfish DNA