helping

American

[hel-ping] / ˈhɛl pɪŋ /

noun

the act of a person or thing that helps.
a portion of food served to a person at one time.

That's his third helping of ice cream.

adjective

giving aid, assistance, support, or the like.

helping British

/ ˈhɛlpɪŋ /

noun

a single portion of food taken at a meal

"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

Etymology

Origin of helping

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English; see origin at help, -ing ¹, -ing ²

Vocabulary lists containing helping

"Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf"

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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.

There will be £20m for environmental schemes and reducing emissions, including helping to restore peatlands and biodiversity on its estates.

From BBC • May 18, 2026

Berkshire also said it bought shares of Delta and Macy’s last quarter, helping propel the companies’ stocks higher before the bell.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 18, 2026

In others, they are helping scientists identify organisms completely new to science.

From Science Daily • May 18, 2026

But lately, things have been working the other way around — helping to fuel what has been, by some measures, a historic stock-market comeback after a difficult first quarter.

From MarketWatch • May 17, 2026

We had lost nearly an hour helping Katy Logan.

From "Black Star, Bright Dawn" by Scott O'Dell

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