serve someone right

English

Pronunciation

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Verb

serve someone right (third-person singular simple present serves someone right, present participle serving someone right, simple past and past participle served someone right)

1. (idiomatic, of an unpleasant event) To happen to someone who is thought to deserve it.
   • 1851 June – 1852 April, Harriet Beecher Stowe, “Chapter XVIII”, in Uncle Tom’s Cabin; or, Life among the Lowly, volumes (please specify |volume=I or II), Boston, Mass.: John P[unchard] Jewett & Company; Cleveland, Oh.: Jewett, Proctor & Worthington, published 20 March 1852, →OCLC:

     "And they counts my money and tickets, when I gets home, to see if I's got the change; and if I han't they half kills me."
     "And serves you right," said Jane, the pert chambermaid, "if you will take their money to get drunk on."

2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see serve,‎ right.

   If my memory serves me right, we had a similar discussion a few months ago.

Translations

happen to someone who deserves it

• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 抵死 (dai² sei²)

  Mandarin: 活該／活该 (zh) (huógāi)

• Dutch: zijn verdiende loon
• Finnish: olla jollekin oikein
• French: cheh (fr)
• German: jemandem recht geschehen, verdient haben
• Hungarian: megérdemli (hu), úgy kell neki
• Portuguese: (ser) bem feito para object
• Spanish: habérselo merecido,habérselo buscado,estarle bien empleado
• Swedish: vara rätt åt någon
• Ukrainian: бути по заслузі (buty po zasluzi)

serves you right!

• Arabic: يخدم لكم الحق
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 抵死 (dai² sei²)

  Mandarin: 活該／活该 (zh) (huógāi)

• Czech: komu patřit (cs)
• Finnish: ihan oikein sinulle
• French: bien fait ! (fr)
• German: geschieht dir recht!
• Greek: καλά να πάθεις (kalá na pátheis), καλά να πάθετε (kalá na páthete)
• Hungarian: megérdemled!, úgy kell neked!
• Italian: ti sta bene!
• Japanese: 様を見ろ！ (ざまをみろ！, zama-o miro!)
• Malay: padan muka!
• Maori: kaitoa!
• Polish: dobrze Ci tak! m or f, masz na co zasłużyłeś! m, masz na co zasłużyłaś! f, sam jesteś sobie winien! m, sama jesteś sobie winna! f
• Portuguese: bem feito!
• Romanian: așa îți trebuie!, bine îți face! (of an event in the present), bine ți-a făcut! (of an event in the past)
• Russian: подело́м тебе́! (podelóm tebé!), так тебе́ и на́до! (tak tebé i nádo!), сам винова́т! (sam vinovát!) (to a man), сама́ винова́та! (samá vinováta!) (to a woman)
• Spanish: ¡te está bien empleado!
• Swedish: rätt åt (någon)
• Thai: สมน้ำหน้า (th) (sǒm-nám-nâa)
• Ukrainian: коту́зі по заслу́зі (kotúzi po zaslúzi), так тобі і треба (tak tobi i treba)

See also

• ask for it
• have it coming
• just deserts