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Synonyms

helper

American  
[hel-per] / ˈhɛl pər /

noun

  1. a person or thing that helps or gives assistance, support, etc.

    Synonyms:
    ally, auxiliary, backer, supporter, assistant, aid

  2. an extra locomotive attached to a train at the front, middle, or rear, especially to provide extra power for climbing a steep grade.

Etymology

Origin of helper

First recorded in 1250–1300; help + -er 1

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Claude Code, the AI-powered helper for writing computer code, has become popular in recent months.

From BBC • Apr. 1, 2026

She’s got main-character energy throughout the series, as a football thrower for Elroy, a homework helper for Judy and a dinner sous-chef for Jane.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 30, 2026

In the low-income Madanpur Khadar neighbourhood, 36-year-old domestic helper Sheela Kumari says she has been forced to abandon LPG cooking gas cylinders for cooking after prices more than doubled.

From Barron's • Mar. 24, 2026

But in this case as in others, the AI helper didn’t do consistently well.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 26, 2026

Omakayas knew that Nokomis wanted her to search for and find a spirit helper, someone great in the spirit world who would help her to recover her will to live.

From "The Birchbark House" by Louise Erdrich

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.