The prefix self- goes back to the Old English word self, meaning virtually the same thing it does today. In Old English there were about a dozen compounds with self- of which only one has remained common: self-will. In Modern English, however, the number of new compounds with self- has increased. Self- usually forms compounds with adjectives, as in self-conscious, self-employed, and self-governing, and nouns, as in self-confidence, self-improvement, and self-satisfaction, and indicates something about oneself.
