use-icon

HOW TO USE THE DICTIONARY

To look up an entry in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, use the search window above. For best results, after typing in the word, click on the “Search” button instead of using the “enter” key.

Some compound words (like bus rapid transit, dog whistle, or identity theft) don’t appear on the drop-down list when you type them in the search bar. For best results with compound words, place a quotation mark before the compound word in the search window.

guide to the dictionary

use-icon

THE USAGE PANEL

The Usage Panel is a group of nearly 200 prominent scholars, creative writers, journalists, diplomats, and others in occupations requiring mastery of language. Annual surveys have gauged the acceptability of particular usages and grammatical constructions.

The Panelists

open-icon

AMERICAN HERITAGE DICTIONARY APP

The new American Heritage Dictionary app is now available for iOS and Android.

scroll-icon

THE AMERICAN HERITAGE DICTIONARY BLOG

The articles in our blog examine new words, revised definitions, interesting images from the fifth edition, discussions of usage, and more.

100-words-icon

See word lists from the best-selling 100 Words Series!

Find out more!

open-icon

INTERESTED IN DICTIONARIES?

Check out the Dictionary Society of North America at http://www.dictionarysociety.com

help (hĕlp)
Share:
v. helped, help·ing, helps
v.tr.
1.
a. To give assistance to (someone); make it easier for (someone) to do something; aid: She helped me with my project. I helped her find her book.
b. To give material or financial aid to: help the homeless.
c. To wait on, as in a store or restaurant: Please help the customer in aisle 20.
2.
a. To contribute to the effectiveness or improvement of (something); improve or advance: tax breaks to help create jobs; new ways to help the environment; a remark that didn't help the situation.
b. To ease the pain or discomfort of; relieve: medication to help your cold.
3. To refrain from; avoid or resist. Used with can or cannot: couldn't help laughing.
v.intr.
1. To be of service; give assistance: I made a cake, and my friend helped.
2. To be of use or provide relief: He has a bad back, and physical therapy hasn't helped.
n.
1. The action of helping; assistance: Do you need help with that package?
2. One that helps: You've been a great help. A food processor is a help to the serious cook.
3.
a. Archaic A person employed to help, especially a farm worker or domestic servant.
b. Such employees considered as a group. Often used with the.
Idioms:
help (oneself) to
1. To serve or provide oneself with: Help yourself to the cookies.
2. Informal To take (something) without asking permission: The thief even helped himself to the spare change in the jar.
help (someone) off
To assist (someone) in taking off a piece of clothing: Help me off with these boots.
help (someone) on
To assist in putting on a piece of clothing: Help your grandmother on with her coat.

[Middle English helpen, from Old English helpan.]

helper n.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.