Functioning
Functioning adjective - Being in effective operation.
Serve as and functioning are semantically related. In some cases you can use "Serve as" instead a verb "Functioning".
Serve as
Functioning and serve as are semantically related. Sometimes you can replace term "Functioning" with "Serve as", this words are similar.
Mutual synonyms
Both terms in one sentence
-
The Telethia has six limbs; the upper two always serve as wings/arms while the lower two always serve as legs, but the middle two switch between functioning as arms or legs depending on its stance.
-
It can also serve as a Weaksauce Weakness if something needs to be wound up to keep functioning.
Source: Wind-Up Key - Henchmen Race: The orcs were designed purely to serve as weapons, and most people assumed that they weren't capable of functioning without someone to give them orders.
Source: Discworld / Unseen Academicals
Cite this Source
Serve as and Functioning. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/functioning/serve_as
Functioning & Serve as. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/functioning/serve_as>.
Serve as or Functioning. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/functioning/serve_as.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "functioning" and "serve as" have occurred on timeline