selective service

noun

: a system under which people are called up for military service : draft

Examples of selective service 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.
Security is not a public good but, rather, a selective service. — Bilal Y. Saab, Foreign Affairs, 31 Aug. 2015 Norway and Finland are among the few countries with selective service systems that draft women as well as men, though Denmark recently joined them. — Joshua Keating, Vox, 18 June 2024 If smaller-scale transits resume, Premier Alliance carriers may start by transporting smaller volumes or deploying selective services to test conditions, according to Pai. — Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 29 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1917, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of selective service was in 1917

Rhymes for selective service

See All Rhymes for selective service

Browse Nearby Words

selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor
selective service
selective transmission
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Selective service.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/selective%20service. Accessed 7 Jul. 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!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

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

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

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
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
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All