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
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use avail in a sentence
The program, which Hoover supported, was far more interested in stories about mob bosses and kidnappers than the Ku Klux Klan, the terrorist organization the bureau was infiltrating at the time, to little avail.
While Hollywood looked for perfect villains, they were hiding in plain sight | Ann Hornaday | January 15, 2021 | Washington PostPuerto Triunfo has for years sought zoos willing to take the hippos, to no avail.
Invasion of the hippos: Colombia is running out of time to tackle Pablo Escobar’s wildest legacy | Sarah Kaplan | January 11, 2021 | Washington PostThey’ve been fighting the county to reopen the public corridor to no avail.
Officials Let Hawaii’s Waterfront Homeowners Damage Public Beaches Again and Again | by Sophie Cocke, Honolulu Star-Advertiser | December 31, 2020 | ProPublicaThe Australian team made some heroic efforts to correct the problem, but to no avail.
You try to click open the gear chest, but to no avail, because in reality you’re still way off.
How Do We Remember Places? This Study Used Lasers and VR to Point the Way | Shelly Fan | November 10, 2020 | Singularity Hub
Jane was highly gratified by this commendation, and most eagerly availed herself of his most valuable offer.
Madame Roland, Makers of History | John S. C. AbbottAll her scheming and fencing would have availed her nothing if she were to break down at the critical moment.
Dope | Sax RohmerMrs. Prentice told Jess that she could pay for the coal a little at a time, and the girl gladly availed herself of this advantage.
The Girls of Central High on the Stage | Gertrude W. MorrisonThe following day being Sunday, we availed ourselves of the opportunity of attending services at the Minster.
British Highways And Byways From A Motor Car | Thomas D. MurphyComparatively few of them availed themselves of the permission granted by Cyrus, to return to Palestine.
Gospel Philosophy | J. H. Ward
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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