can't help

Idioms

Also,. Be unable to do otherwise. For example, I can't help thinking that the keys will turn up eventually, or He couldn't help but believe he would pass the entrance exam, or I cannot but applaud his efforts. The first of these phrases, can't help, is always followed by a present participle whereas the others take an infinitive. [c. 1700]

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.

See Examples For:

can't help

He sets so many plots in motion that you can’t help wishing he might forget about one or two of them.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026

"Even in the public eye, I feel that same instinct – I can't help it."

From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026

Eventually, one too many social gaffes have stacked up into a rickety pile, and Joe can’t help but play the Big Bad Wolf.

From Salon ● Jul. 5, 2026

Cordido's eyes can't help but radiate with gratitude when he speaks about the volunteer rescuers who pulled him from the ruins of Venezuela's double earthquake, which killed more than 2,600 people.

From Barron's ● Jul. 4, 2026

“I honestly can’t help but think,” George Bass once said, “I was fated to do what I do.”

From "Shipwrecked!" by Martin W. Sandler

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