Help
verbTo give assistance or support to someone or something.
How to spell help
4 letters · 1 syllable
How to pronounce help
What does help mean?
- verbTo give assistance or support to someone or something.
- nounAssistance, support, or aid given to someone.
Help in a sentence
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verb
A good colleague will help you meet the deadline.
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noun
The technical help from the support team was excellent.
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verb
Regular exercise can help lower blood pressure.
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noun
She offered her help with the office move.
Where does help come from?
Language of origin: Germanic
The word comes from Old English helpan, a strong verb meaning 'to assist, support, or aid', and the related noun help meaning 'assistance'. It belongs to a wide Germanic family that includes Old Norse hjalpa, Dutch helpen, and German helfen, all carrying the same idea of lending support to someone. In its earliest centuries the verb was conjugated as a strong verb, with past forms like 'halp' and 'holpen', traces of which lingered in older English long after 'helped' became standard. The simple consonant cluster 'lp' and the short vowel have stayed remarkably stable, which is why the spelling is plain and presents almost no trap. The everyday phrase 'helpmate' and the archaic 'holpen' (still found in old Bible translations) both descend from this same root.
How the word is built
- help (native Old English root, used for both verb and noun)
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