helpful
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of helpful
Explanation
If you are inclined to assist others in any situation, you are a helpful person. Your actions can also be called helpful, like your helpful habit of doing the dishes every night. If you want to be helpful, you find ways to make things easier for others, like holding the door for them. Things can also be helpful — maps, cell phones, dictionaries, and holders for wet umbrellas. Taking good notes and setting your alarm to go off early are helpful tips for days when you have big tests. A discussion is helpful if it teaches you something new or gives you ideas for doing something better.
Vocabulary lists containing helpful
Beowulf vocabulary
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Talk Like Shakespeare Day, List 3
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Words to Describe a Teacher
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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.
"It also raises the question as to whether the helpful gains from more higher income shoppers migrating to Walmart are starting to fade," he wrote.
From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026
Third, central bank demand for gold remains “resilient” and lastly, Lerner also cites a softening dollar as being helpful.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 20, 2026
Viktoria, who moved to the UK from Kyiv in Ukraine, said the uniform bank was extremely helpful while her family settled into a new life.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
“It’s been a helpful piece of leverage for the federal negotiators to have these provincial alcohol bans as a bargaining chip,” she said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
“That means they’re taking away your blue ribbon,” says Ainsley, pretending she’s being helpful.
From "Shine!" by J.J. and Chris Grabenstein
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.
