- [countable, usually singular]
the type of person you are, especially the way you normally behave, look or feel （自己的）通常的行为方式，本来面目，惯常心态 You'll soon be feeling your old self again (= feeling well or happy again). 你很快就会恢复原样的。 He's not his usual happy self this morning. 今天早上，他不像平素那样乐呵呵的。 Only with a few people could she be her real self (= show what she was really like rather than what she pretended to be). 只有和某几个人在一起时，她才能表现出真实的自我。 his private/professional self (= how he behaves at home/work) 他在家里／上班时的样子
Extra ExamplesHe's his usual cheerful self again. 他又恢复了他惯常的乐天性格。 She knew that with a holiday he would be back to his former self. 她知道，如果能有一次休假，他就可以恢复往日的丰采。 Her private and public selves were vastly different. 她在私下里和在公众面前的样子完全不同。
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- whole
- real
- true
- …
- reveal
- discover
- find
- …
- a loss of self
- a sense of self
- a shadow of your former self
- …
- [uncountable] (also the self [singular])(formal)
a person’s personality or character that makes them different from other people 个性；自我 Many people living in institutions have lost their sense of self (= the feeling that they are individual people). 许多生活在福利院里的人已经失去了个性意识。 the inner self (= a person’s emotional and spiritual character) 内心的思想感情 a lack of confidence in the self 缺乏自信
Extra ExamplesHe was afraid to reveal his innermost self. 他不敢暴露自己内心的情感。 a book about reaching for one's better self 一本关于追求人性真善美的书 a movie about a boy who falls in love and finds his true self in the process 一部关于坠入爱河的男孩在恋爱中发现自我的影片 He argues that there has been an increased focus on the self. 他认为人们越来越关注自我。
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- whole
- real
- true
- …
- reveal
- discover
- find
- …
- a loss of self
- a sense of self
- a shadow of your former self
- …
- [uncountable] (formal)
your own advantage or pleasure rather than that of other people 个人利益；一己的享乐；私心 - [countable]
used to refer to a person （指一个人）自己，本人
Word OriginOld English, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch zelf and German selbe. Early use was emphatic, expressing the sense ‘(I) myself’, ‘(he) himself’, etc.
Idioms
be a shadow/ghost of your former self
to not have the strength, influence, etc. that you used to have 失去昔日的力量（或影响等）；威风不再；不如当年 When his career ended, he became a shadow of his former self. 当他的职业生涯结束时，他变成了以前的自己的影子。