served, was useful for, was good for
Suponho que eu poderia ter me perguntado para que servia ganhar mais dinheiro.
I suppose I could have asked myself what the point of making more money was.
O Antonio sempre servia uma boa refeição.
Antonio always served a good meal.
Se alguma peça ficava curta demais, a parte cortada servia em outro lugar.
If any piece was too short, the cut-off part could be used somewhere else.