serve up

verb

served up; serving up; serves up
: to give (food) to someone at a meal, in a restaurant, etc.
That little restaurant serves up some of the best Indian food in the city.
—sometimes used figuratively
The movie serves up a lot of laughs.

Examples of serve up in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The Lighthouse is a fine dining restaurant that serves up French cuisine with an Asian twist – the bar upstairs is also the perfect spot to watch the sunset. — Ann Lee, TheWeek, 24 Aug. 2026 In this magical world, everything is served up to guests on a silver platter. — Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 23 Aug. 2026 For food, Proto serves up some of the city’s best seafood, while M’arden Wine Bar is a stylish hideaway with a great selection of Croatian wines. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Aug. 2026 On August 21, Hailey Bieber served up an elevated athleisure look with a nearly $10,000 price tag during a casual afternoon stroll in Los Angeles. — Chanel Vargas, InStyle, 22 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for serve up

Rhymes for serve up

See All Rhymes for serve up

Browse Nearby Words

serve two masters
serve up
Servian
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Serve up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/serve%20up. Accessed 27 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of southpaw

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Aug. 28

Why do we say 'break a leg'?
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
alt-684346df967d5
Add A Letter Quiz Pick the letter that goes in the same spot in fou...
See All