HELPFUL

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does helpful mean? 

• HELPFUL (adjective)
  The adjective HELPFUL has 1 sense:

1. providing assistance or serving a useful function

  Familiarity information: HELPFUL used as an adjective is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• HELPFUL (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Providing assistance or serving a useful function

Similar:

steadying (causing to become steady)

accommodating (obliging; willing to do favors)

adjuvant (enhancing the action of a medical treatment)

assistive (giving assistance)

face-saving (maintaining dignity or prestige)

facilitative (freeing from difficulty or impediment)

facilitatory (inducing or aiding in facilitating neural activity)

implemental; instrumental; subservient (serving or acting as a means or aid)

laborsaving; laboursaving (designed to replace or conserve human and especially manual labor)

ministrant (giving practical help to)

reformative; reformatory (tending to reform)

right-hand (most helpful and reliable)

stabilising; stabilizing (causing to become stable)

Also:

useful; utile (being of use or service)

accommodating; accommodative (helpful in bringing about a harmonious adaptation)

encouraging (giving courage or confidence or hope)

cooperative (done with or working with others for a common purpose or benefit)

Antonym:

unhelpful (providing no assistance)

Derivation:

helpfulness (the property of providing useful assistance)

 Context examples 

The findings suggest that this approach may be appropriate for some disease scenarios, but may induce complex responses in other disease scenarios by inhibiting helpful and homeostatic functions of inflammation.

(Immune system can slow degenerative eye disease, National Institutes of Health)

Lead investigator at Addenbrooke's, Dr Shelley Dua, said: "Precautionary allergen labels on food such as the commonly used 'May contain traces of..." are currently quite vague and not very helpful.

(Poor Sleep, Lack of Exercise Increase Risk of Nut Allergy, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

Other Cancers will link up with a helpful business collaborator, like an agent, publicist, manager, business partner, writing partner, or another specialist who will work with you one-on-one.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

But, as I say, I had thought out one or two points that were helpful.

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

At home in Exeter I always used to make up the time-tables, so as to be helpful to my husband.

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

Pain relievers, acupuncture and sometimes surgery are helpful.

(Pain, NIH)

Information about sunspots that develop before they rotate into view of Earth and Earth-orbiting spacecraft is helpful in predicting space-weather effects of solar emissions related to sunspots.

(Curiosity Mars Rover Tracks Sunspots, NASA)

“That should be helpful, Watson,” he remarked as we took our seats in the Woolwich train.

(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Precious and helpful hours to Jo, for now her heart received the teaching that it needed.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

Echinacea extract might be helpful to boost the body's immune system and to help fight infections, especially those of the upper respiratory tract.

(Echinacea Extract, NCI Thesaurus)