HELP

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IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does help mean? 

• HELP (noun)
  The noun HELP has 4 senses:

1. the activity of contributing to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose

2. a person who contributes to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose

3. a person or thing that is a resource that helps make something easier or possible to do

4. a means of serving

  Familiarity information: HELP used as a noun is uncommon.

• HELP (verb)
  The verb HELP has 8 senses:

1. give help or assistance; be of service

2. improve the condition of

3. be of use

4. abstain from doing; always used with a negative

5. help to some food; help with food or drink

6. contribute to the furtherance of

7. take or use

8. improve; change for the better

  Familiarity information: HELP used as a verb is common.

 Dictionary entry details 

• HELP (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The activity of contributing to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

aid; assist; assistance; help

Context example:

offered his help in unloading

Hypernyms ("help" is a kind of...):

activity (any specific behavior)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "help"):

facilitation (act of assisting or making easier the progress or improvement of something)

self-help (the act of helping or improving yourself without relying on anyone else)

support (aiding the cause or policy or interests of)

comfort (assistance, such as that provided to an enemy or to a known criminal)

boost; encouragement (the act of giving hope or support to someone)

accommodation (the act of providing something (lodging or seat or food) to meet a need)

service (an act of help or assistance)

ministration; relief; succor; succour (assistance in time of difficulty)

thanks (with the help of or owing to)

recourse; refuge; resort (act of turning to for assistance)

hand; helping hand (physical assistance)

lift (the act of giving temporary assistance)

Derivation:

help (improve; change for the better)

help (give help or assistance; be of service)

help (contribute to the furtherance of)

help (be of use)

help (improve the condition of)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A person who contributes to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Synonyms:

assistant; help; helper; supporter

Context example:

they hired additional help to finish the work

Hypernyms ("help" is a kind of...):

worker (a person who works at a specific occupation)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "help"):

cat's-paw; instrument; pawn (a person used by another to gain an end)

birthing coach; doula; labor coach; monitrice (an assistant (often the father of the soon-to-be-born child) who provides support for a woman in labor by encouraging her to use techniques learned in childbirth-preparation classes)

underboss (an assistant or second-in-command to a chief (especially in a crime syndicate))

fashion model; manakin; manikin; mannequin; mannikin; model (a woman who wears clothes to display fashions)

model; poser (a person who poses for a photographer or painter or sculptor)

paraprofessional (a trained worker who is not a member of a profession but who assists a professional)

powder monkey (someone who carries explosives (as from the magazine to the guns on board a warship))

prompter; theater prompter (someone who assists a performer by providing the next words of a forgotten speech)

chief assistant; man Friday; right-hand man (the most helpful assistant)

secretarial assistant; secretary (an assistant who handles correspondence and clerical work for a boss or an organization)

sidesman ((Church of England) an assistant to the churchwarden; collects offerings of money in the church)

foot soldier; subordinate; subsidiary; underling (an assistant subject to the authority or control of another)

water boy; waterer (an assistant who supplies drinking water)

whipper-in (huntsman's assistant in managing the hounds)

girl Friday (a female assistant who has a range of duties)

coadjutor (an assistant to a bishop)

accomplice; confederate (a person who joins with another in carrying out some plan (especially an unethical or illegal plan))

aide; auxiliary (someone who acts as assistant)

attendant; attender; tender (someone who waits on or tends to or attends to the needs of another)

bat boy ((baseball) a boy who takes care of bats and other baseball equipment)

dental assistant (an assistant to a dentist)

actor's assistant; dresser (a wardrobe assistant for an actor)

event planner (someone who plans social events as a profession (usually for government or corporate officials))

facilitator (someone who makes progress easier)

flower girl (a young girl who carries flowers in a (wedding) procession)

enforcer; hatchet man (one whose job it is to execute unpleasant tasks for a superior)

deputy; lieutenant (an assistant with power to act when his superior is absent)

Derivation:

help (give help or assistance; be of service)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A person or thing that is a resource that helps make something easier or possible to do

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

aid; assistance; help

Context example:

his job was to give technical assistance over the phone

Hypernyms ("help" is a kind of...):

resource (a source of aid or support that may be drawn upon when needed)

Derivation:

help (improve the condition of)

help (improve; change for the better)

help (give help or assistance; be of service)

help (contribute to the furtherance of)

help (be of use)

Sense 4

Meaning:

A means of serving

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

avail; help; service

Context example:

there's no help for it

Hypernyms ("help" is a kind of...):

helpfulness (the property of providing useful assistance)

• HELP (verb)

Conjugation:

Sense 1

Meaning:

Give help or assistance; be of service

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Synonyms:

aid; assist; help

Context example:

She never helps around the house

Hypernyms (to "help" is one way to...):

back up; support (give moral or psychological support, aid, or courage to)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "help"):

bootstrap (help oneself, often through improvised means)

care; give care (provide care for)

avail (be of use to, be useful to)

expedite; hasten (speed up the progress of; facilitate)

succor; succour (help in a difficult situation)

subserve (be helpful or useful)

help out (be of help, as in a particular situation of need)

benefact (help as a benefactor)

assist; attend; attend to; serve; wait on (work for or be a servant to)

alleviate; ease; facilitate (make easier)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody
Something ----s somebody
Somebody ----s to INFINITIVE

Sentence example:

They help him to write the letter

Derivation:

help (the activity of contributing to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose)

help (a person or thing that is a resource that helps make something easier or possible to do)

help (a person who contributes to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose)

helper (a person who helps people or institutions (especially with financial help))

helper (a person who contributes to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Improve the condition of

Classified under:

Verbs of grooming, dressing and bodily care

Synonyms:

aid; help

Context example:

These pills will help the patient

Hypernyms (to "help" is one way to...):

ameliorate; amend; better; improve; meliorate (to make better)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "help"):

bring around; cure; heal (provide a cure for, make healthy again)

benefit; do good (be beneficial for)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s somebody
Something ----s somebody

Derivation:

help (the activity of contributing to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose)

help (a person or thing that is a resource that helps make something easier or possible to do)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Be of use

Classified under:

Verbs of being, having, spatial relations

Synonyms:

facilitate; help

Context example:

This will help to prevent accidents

Hypernyms (to "help" is one way to...):

serve (contribute or conduce to)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s to INFINITIVE
It ----s that CLAUSE
Something ----s INFINITIVE

Sentence example:

Sam cannot help Sue

Derivation:

help (the activity of contributing to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose)

help (a person or thing that is a resource that helps make something easier or possible to do)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Abstain from doing; always used with a negative

Classified under:

Verbs of being, having, spatial relations

Synonyms:

help; help oneself

Context example:

She could not help watching the sad spectacle

Hypernyms (to "help" is one way to...):

forbear; refrain (resist doing something)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s VERB-ing

Sense 5

Meaning:

Help to some food; help with food or drink

Classified under:

Verbs of eating and drinking

Synonyms:

help; serve

Context example:

I served him three times, and after that he helped himself

Hypernyms (to "help" is one way to...):

cater; ply; provide; supply (give what is desired or needed, especially support, food or sustenance)

Verb group:

dish; dish out; dish up; serve; serve up (provide (usually but not necessarily food))

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s somebody

Sentence example:

Sam cannot help Sue

Derivation:

helping (an individual quantity of food or drink taken as part of a meal)

Sense 6

Meaning:

Contribute to the furtherance of

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Context example:

This money will help the development of literacy in developing countries

Hypernyms (to "help" is one way to...):

advance; boost; encourage; further; promote (contribute to the progress or growth of)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something

Derivation:

help (the activity of contributing to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose)

help (a person or thing that is a resource that helps make something easier or possible to do)

helper (a person who helps people or institutions (especially with financial help))

helper (a person who contributes to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose)

Sense 7

Meaning:

Take or use

Classified under:

Verbs of eating and drinking

Synonyms:

avail; help

Context example:

She helped herself to some of the office supplies

Hypernyms (to "help" is one way to...):

exploit; work (use or manipulate to one's advantage)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sentence example:

They help themselves

Sense 8

Meaning:

Improve; change for the better

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Context example:

New slipcovers will help the old living room furniture

Hypernyms (to "help" is one way to...):

ameliorate; amend; better; improve; meliorate (to make better)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s something

Derivation:

help (the activity of contributing to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose)

help (a person or thing that is a resource that helps make something easier or possible to do)

 Context examples 

If she had been willing to help justice she would probably have communicated with the police already.

(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

I shall be surprised if we don’t get some help down there.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

He could not help seeing that you were about five times as pretty as every other woman in the room.

(Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)

Looking great always helps love along.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

Indeed he was obliged to call to her to help him up again.

(The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum)

I described the ship to him in the best terms I could, and explained, by the help of my handkerchief displayed, how it was driven forward by the wind.

(Gulliver's Travels into several remote nations of the world, by Jonathan Swift)

'Never helped nobody' means that, not helping nobody, they must have helped somebody.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

“God help me, I would not have them ashamed of their father. My God! What an exposure! What can I do?”

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

No, he doesn't, for Arthur tried twice to make a chance, and I helping him all I could; I am not ashamed to say it now.

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

Hobbling about on it from morning till night was not helping it any.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)