| English Dictionary |
HELPLESS
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
| IPA (US): |  |
Dictionary entry overview: What does helpless mean?
• HELPLESS (adjective)
The adjective HELPLESS has 3 senses:
1. lacking in or deprived of strength or power
2. unable to function; without help
3. unable to manage independently
Familiarity information: HELPLESS used as an adjective is uncommon.
Dictionary entry details
Sense 1
Meaning:
Lacking in or deprived of strength or power
Synonyms:
helpless; incapacitated
Context example:
helpless with laughter
Similar:
powerless (lacking power)
Derivation:
helplessness (powerlessness revealed by an inability to act)
Sense 2
Meaning:
Unable to function; without help
Synonyms:
helpless; lost
Similar:
hopeless (without hope because there seems to be no possibility of comfort or success)
Derivation:
helplessness (a feeling of being unable to manage)
Sense 3
Meaning:
Unable to manage independently
Context example:
as helpless as a baby
Similar:
dependent (relying on or requiring a person or thing for support, supply, or what is needed)
Derivation:
helplessness (a feeling of being unable to manage)
Context examples
“Oh dear me, dear me, do you think it will do me any good?” cried my mother in a helpless manner.
(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)
He had had one of those violent strains of the ankle which leave a man helpless.
(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
But still I had feared him, blind and helpless and listening, always listening, and I never let his strong arms get within reach of me while I worked.
(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)
But unfortunately my own nicety, and the nicety of my friends, have made me what I am, an idle, helpless being.
(Sense and Sensibility, by Jane Austen)
Our enemy is at his most helpless; and if we can come on him by day, on the water, our task will be over.
(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)
They may also feel sad, helpless, or anxious.
(Coping with Disasters, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
But he had no arms at all, and, seeing this, the Scarecrow did not fear that so helpless a creature could prevent them from climbing the hill.
(The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum)
“To tell the truth”—he sank his face into his thin, white hands—“I have felt helpless.”
(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
It was her custom to be helpless. They complained.
(The Call of the Wild, by Jack London)
He could see no more and was helpless as a child.
(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)
| Learn English with... Proverbs |
"Let sleeping dogs lie." (Agatha Christie)
"If you hear a person talking good about things that aren't in you, don't be sure that he wouldn't also say bad things about things that aren't in you." (Arabic proverb)
"Learned young is done old." (Dutch proverb)