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.
“The World Cup was good, it was helpful, but it wasn’t probably great,” he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
Would it be ethical — or even helpful — to tell her now that I would prefer not to inherit anything?
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 23, 2026
Monitoring like FoodNet had previously been doing, is helpful, but it’s difficult to make direct causal connections based on what-ifs, no matter how likely.
From Slate ● Jul. 22, 2026
This was seen as particularly important and helpful to countries like Scotland, where the wildfire risk has been increasing with climate change.
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
“I am growing old. I trust you will let me know if there is any way I can still be helpful to the Collective.”
From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera
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.
