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

---

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.

---

AID ³ American  

abbreviation

1. American Institute of Decorators.

2. American Institute of Interior Designers.

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

---

aid ¹ British  

/ eɪd /

verb

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

2. (tr) to assist financially

---

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)

---

Aid ³ British  

combining form

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

   Band Aid

   Ferryaid

---

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.

Related Words

See help.

Other Word Forms

• aider noun
• aidful adjective
• aidless adjective
• unaided adjective
• unaidedly adverb
• unaiding 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”; adjuvant ( def. )

Origin of AID²

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

Example Sentences

In a Feb. 14 letter to Monique Limón, the California Senate’s president pro tem, Ms. Heriot argued that while the financial aid packages of two students can look similar, big differences may remain.

From The Wall Street Journal

Yes, even Israel, whose air force was called upon to aid northern tribal militias during their civil war with the Yemeni republic and Egyptian forces.

From The Wall Street Journal

In Rmeish, another town that overlooks Israel, women gathered around an aid convoy from a Catholic organisation.

From Barron's

The school is especially appealing to families who don’t qualify for need-based financial aid in the U.S., but still want a good deal.

From The Wall Street Journal

So who was going to step forward to aid a heavily favored team that was suddenly reeling, falling behind by nine points early in the second quarter?

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

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