Dictionary.com

Popular Searches

 Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

helpless

American  
[help-lis] / ˈhɛlp lɪs /

adjective

  1. unable to help oneself; weak or dependent.

    a helpless invalid.

  2. deprived of strength or power; powerless; incapacitated.

    They were helpless with laughter.

  3. affording no help.

helpless British  
/ ˈhɛlplɪs /

adjective

  1. unable to manage independently

  2. made powerless or weak

    they were helpless from so much giggling

  3. without help

"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 Word Forms

  • helplessly adverb
  • helplessness noun

Etymology

Origin of helpless

First recorded in 1125–75; Middle English; help + -less

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.

"I can't imagine how helpless people must have been," she said between heavy sighs, adding: "I really regret that I didn't knock on a single door."

From Barron's

She adds that Covid left young people feeling helpless as they tried to manage the transition from full-time education to the workplace and missed out on work experience because of lockdown.

From BBC

How long before it got here, and found him lying helpless and sick?

From Literature

He lifts his hands, palms up, in a helpless gesture.

From Literature

I don’t think it’s untrue to say that most people right now feel helpless, at least to some degree.

From Salon

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.