Meaning & use
self-seeking
Last updated
Meanings
adjectivebefore a noundisapproving
Mainly interested in your own advantage, often without caring about others.
Grammar: Usually comes before a noun: a self-seeking politician.
Patterns
- a self-seeking person
- self-seeking motives
- self-seeking behavior
Voters grew tired of self-seeking politicians.
His self-seeking motives became obvious.
She criticized the self-seeking culture in the company.
noununcountabledisapprovingformal
The practice of looking after your own interests, often at the expense of others.
Grammar: Rare as a noun; usually used in formal or critical writing.
Patterns
- accused of self-seeking
- a form of self-seeking
The report accused the officials of self-seeking.
He saw their charity as a form of self-seeking.
Common combinations
- self-seeking politician
- The self-seeking politician ignored the voters' needs.
- self-seeking motives
- His self-seeking motives were clear to everyone.
- self-seeking behavior
- Self-seeking behavior can damage team trust.
Synonyms and how they differ
- selfish
- More general and common; focuses on caring only about yourself, while self-seeking stresses actively pursuing your own gain.
- opportunistic
- Emphasizes taking advantage of situations for personal benefit, often without planning.
- mercenary
- Stronger and more formal; suggests being motivated mainly by money.
Opposites
Word family
- self-seeker noun
- A person who mainly pursues their own interests.
- self-seeking noun
- The act of pursuing your own interests.
Commonly confused: self-seeking or self-serving?
self-seeking vs self-serving
Very similar, but self-serving often describes actions or statements that conveniently benefit the person making them.
Practice
Choose the best word: 'The mayor was accused of being ______, caring only about his own career.'
Choose one answer.
Self-seeking means pursuing your own advantage, which fits the criticism. Self-reliant and self-sufficient are positive, and self-conscious means shy or embarrassed.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “self-seeking”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.