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• aid
  aid

  verb (used with object)

  to provide support for or relief to; help.
• AID
  AID

  noun

  the division of the United States International Development Cooperation Agency that coordinates the various foreign aid programs with U.S. foreign policy: established in 1961.
• Aid
  Aid

  combining form

  denoting a charitable organization or function that raises money for a cause

aid

¹ American  

[eyd] / eɪd /

verb (used with object)

1. to provide support for or relief to; help.

   to aid the victims of the fire.

2. to promote the progress or accomplishment of; facilitate.

   Synonyms:

   advance, foster, back, abet

   Antonyms:

   frustrate, hinder

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verb (used without object)

1. to give help or assistance.

noun

1. help or support; assistance.

   Synonyms:

   grant, subsidy, relief, succor

2. a person or thing that aids or furnishes assistance; helper; auxiliary.

3. Manège. aids,

   1. Also called natural aids.  the means by which a rider communicates with and controls a horse, as the hands, legs, voice, and shifts in weight.

   2. Also called artificial aids.  the devices used by a rider to increase control of a horse, as spurs, whip, and martingale.

4. aide-de-camp.

5. foreign aid.

6. a payment made by feudal vassals to their lord on special occasions.

7. English History. (after 1066) any of several revenues received by a king in the Middle Ages from his vassals and other subjects, limited by the Magna Charta to specified occasions.

AID ² American  

[eyd] / eɪd /

noun

U.S. Government.

1. the division of the United States International Development Cooperation Agency that coordinates the various foreign aid programs with U.S. foreign policy: established in 1961.

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AID ³ American  

abbreviation

1. American Institute of Decorators.

2. American Institute of Interior Designers.

3. British. artificial insemination donor. Also A.I.D.

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aid ¹ British  

/ eɪd /

verb

1. to give support to (someone to do something); help or assist

2. (tr) to assist financially

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noun

1. assistance; help; support

2. a person, device, etc, that helps or assists

   a teaching aid

3. Also: artificial aid.  mountaineering any of various devices such as piton or nut when used as a direct help in the ascent

4. (in medieval Europe; in England after 1066) a feudal payment made to the king or any lord by his vassals, usually on certain occasions such as the marriage of a daughter or the knighting of an eldest son

5. informal in support of; for the purpose of

AID ² British  

abbreviation

1. acute infectious disease

2. artificial insemination (by) donor: former name for Donor Insemination (DI)

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Aid ³ British  

combining form

1. denoting a charitable organization or function that raises money for a cause

   Band Aid

   Ferryaid

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Commonly Confused

Although the nouns aid and aide both have among their meanings “an assisting person,” the spelling aide is increasingly used for the sense “helper, assistant”: One of the senator's aides is calling. Aide in military use is short for aide-de-camp. It is also the spelling in nurse's aide.

Synonym Usage

See help.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• unaided
  adjective
• aidless
  adjective
• unaiding
  adjective
• aider
  noun
• unaidedly
  adverb
• aidful
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of aid¹

First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English noun aide, eide, from Anglo-French, Old French aide, derivative of verb aid(i)er, from Latin adjūtāre “to help”; see also adjuvant ( def. )

Origin of AID²

A(gency for) I(nternational) D(evelopment)

Explanation

Aid is what you do when you help someone — you come to their aid. Rich countries provide economic aid to poor countries, and if you cut your hand, you'll be looking in the first aid kit for a Band-Aid. You can also use aid as a verb: "The librarian will aid you in your search." English has some words with meanings related to aid, but they're spelled with an -e on the end, because they come from the French. A nurse's aide is someone who assists a nurse. An aide-de-camp is a close assistant and confidant to a military officer, a word often shortened to just aide, to refer to an assistant to a political official.

Example Sentences

Or might it apply even more broadly to those seen to aid them?

From Slate • Jun. 2, 2026

Uganda had already been sharing some health data with the U.S. under previous aid arrangements, she said.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 31, 2026

Shepreth Wildlife Park in Cambridgeshire said the new building featured a range of interactive screens and projections to aid understanding, including an erupting volcano.

From BBC • May 30, 2026

The situation, however, is also playing out in the wake of a dramatic pullback in public health investments from the U.S. government, especially in areas relevant to foreign aid.

From Salon • May 30, 2026

This book is intended to aid those who have little or no background in music, in order to increase their comfort in integrating music into the curriculum.

From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin

Related Words

• assistance
• benefit
• care
• compensation
• cooperation
• gift
• relief
• service
• subsidy
• treatment