avail
to be of use or value to; profit; advantage: All our efforts availed us little in trying to effect a change.
to be of use; have force or efficacy; serve; help: His strength did not avail against the hostile onslaught.
to be of value or profit.
advantage; use; efficacy; effective use in the achievement of a goal or objective: His belated help will be of little or no avail.
avails, Archaic. profits or proceeds.
Idioms about avail
avail oneself of, to use to one's advantage: They availed themselves of the opportunity to hear a free concert.
Origin of avail
1Other words from avail
- a·vail·ing·ly, adverb
- un·a·vailed, adjective
Words Nearby avail
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use avail in a sentence
Over the past month, Fuller reached out to several Nationals super fans on social media in search of the ticket, to no avail.
A Cubs fan needed one ticket to complete his epic collection. A Nats fan came through. | Scott Allen | December 26, 2020 | Washington PostI have tried to discuss this matter with him, but to no avail.
Miss Manners: Husband’s rude eating habits driving wife up the wall | Judith Martin, Nicholas Martin, Jacobina Martin | December 18, 2020 | Washington PostThe Centers for Disease Control and Prevention asked people not to travel for Thanksgiving, to avoid juicing infection rates, to little avail.
Several member states reportedly tried to swap the order of speakers to address the lack of women on Day 1, but to no avail.
The UN General Assembly is the ultimate ‘manel’ | Claire Zillman, reporter | September 23, 2020 | FortuneWhat some politicians and activists had long sought to do to no avail — place working parents and their child care crisis on the center stage of American politics — the virus has done in a matter of months.
Why It Took So Long For Politicians To Treat The Child Care Crisis As A Crisis | Clare Malone (clare.malone@fivethirtyeight.com) | July 16, 2020 | FiveThirtyEight
According to the friend, Brinsley rang his ex-girlfriend, an Air Force reservist named Shaneka Thompson, to no avail.
The left had long tried to resist it through a diverse mix of organizations, devoted to different goals, and all to no avail.
Women have been trying to wield Internet shame against men for years now to little avail.
Online Shaming Gives Creeps the Spotlight They Deserve | Samantha Allen | September 23, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTIn Germany, sex workers get to avail themselves of the same social-welfare infrastructure as all other German workers.
This woke her husband, who questioned and tried to console her, to no avail.
Knocking on Heaven's Door: True Stories of Unexplained, Uncanny Experiences at the Hour of Death | Patricia Pearson | August 11, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTBut such refuge, he knew, could avail him nothing if the bear should scent him out and search for him.
The Giant of the North | R.M. BallantyneI would gladly avail myself of your offer, but the Residency will be invested in less than an hour.
The Red Year | Louis TracyAge and usage were to be of no avail in bringing this wretched piece of workmanship up to the standard of the average.
Antonio Stradivari | Horace William PetherickNeither kisses, nor words of comfort, nor the promise to return soon, were of any avail.
The Life & Letters of Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky | Modeste TchaikovskyAll these titles would avail but little were they not supported by immense riches.
A Philosophical Dictionary, Volume 1 (of 10) | Franois-Marie Arouet (AKA Voltaire)
British Dictionary definitions for avail
/ (əˈveɪl) /
to be of use, advantage, profit, or assistance (to)
avail oneself of to make use of to one's advantage
use or advantage (esp in the phrases of no avail, to little avail)
Origin of avail
1Derived forms of avail
- availingly, adverb
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Other Idioms and Phrases with avail
In addition to the idiom beginning with avail
- avail oneself of
also see:
- to no avail
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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