helpless

[ help-lis ]

/ ˈhɛlp lɪs /

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See synonyms for: helpless / helplessly / helplessness on Thesaurus.com

adjective

unable to help oneself; weak or dependent: a helpless invalid.

deprived of strength or power; powerless; incapacitated: They were helpless with laughter.

affording no help.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of helpless

Middle English word dating back to 1125–75; see origin at help, -less

OTHER WORDS FROM helpless

help·less·ly, adverbhelp·less·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use helpless in a sentence

Some large part of America feels helpless before forces they don’t understand, while the rest of us feel helpless before people we don’t understand.
The virus caused more than a pandemic. It set us all ablaze.|Philip Kennicott|February 5, 2021|Washington Post
It is very difficult to sit by helplessly while a friend is imprisoned for a crime that is too implausible to comprehend.
Behind Bars for the Holidays: 11 Political Prisoners We Want to See Free In 2015|Movements.Org|December 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Rather than helplessly obeying the dictates of management, workers are obliged to do what union bosses tell them.
A Crazy California Union Scandal|James Poulos|August 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
She is helplessly oblivious to what is going on between Iago and Othello.
Shakespeare’s Movie Magic|Marina Watts, Malcolm Jones|April 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST

When it came to paying it back, he was helplessly and horribly bedridden.
Former Navy Officer Bryan Caisse Is Accused of Defrauding Friends and Classmates|Michael Daly|January 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Her novels are not, as some insist on thinking, the helplessly romantic effusions of a repressed spinster.
Jane Austen’s Tough Love|Rachel M. Brownstein|June 23, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Arrived at the boat, they found Mayne standing in the water and leaning helplessly against the side of the craft.
The Red Year|Louis Tracy
After a time she managed to grope her way to her bedroom, where, turning up the light, she sank down helplessly upon the bed.
Dope|Sax Rohmer
The deadly coil has made possible the devastating spectacle in Europe, which we are helplessly looking on.
Third class in Indian railways|Mahatma Gandhi
She stopped just inside the threshold, and looking from one to the other with a scared face, stood wringing her hands helplessly.
Those Dale Girls|Frank Weston Carruth
One of the pack-horses fell and lay helplessly in the stream until it was fairly dragged to its feet.
Mystery Ranch|Arthur Chapman

British Dictionary definitions for helpless

helpless

/ (ˈhɛlplɪs) /

adjective

unable to manage independently

made powerless or weakthey were helpless from so much giggling

without help

Derived forms of helpless

helplessly, adverbhelplessness, noun

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

helpless

Origin of helpless

OTHER WORDS FROM helpless

Words related to helpless

How to use helpless in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for helpless

Derived forms of helpless