self noun (PERSONALITY)
C1 [ C or U ] plural selves the set of someone's characteristics, such as personality and ability, that are not physical and make that person different from other people:
The hero of the movie finally finds his true self (= discovers what his true personality and feelings are).
When I saw them this afternoon they were more like their old/normal selves (= as they were in the past).
a sense of self
More examples
- She's not her customary cheerful self today.
- The Minister was her usual evasive self, skilfully dodging reporters' questions about her possible resignation.
- He seemed ill at ease and not his usual self.
- It was a long time after the accident before he seemed like his former self.
- He wasn't his usual ebullient self.
self noun (PERSONAL ADVANTAGE)
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
