self-interest

noun

Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *swé? Proto-Indo-European *selbʰ-der. Proto-Germanic *selbaz Old English self Old English self- Middle English self- English self- English interest English self-interest From self- + interest.

1. One's personal interest or advantage, especially when pursued without regard for others.

   “I cannot abandon my husband for the sake of self-interest and personal gain.”

   “And so he reasoned until the first generous impulse to proclaim the truth and relinquish his titles and his estates to their rightful owner was forgotten beneath the mass of sophistries which self-interest had advanced.”