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as in to benefit
to provide with something useful or desirable being independently wealthy certainly helped him during his years as a struggling young artist

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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help

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noun

Synonym Chooser

How is the word help distinct from other similar verbs?

Some common synonyms of help are ameliorate, better, and improve. While all these words mean "to make more acceptable or to bring nearer a standard," help implies a bettering that still leaves room for improvement.

a coat of paint would help that house

In what contexts can ameliorate take the place of help?

Although the words ameliorate and help have much in common, ameliorate implies making more tolerable or acceptable conditions that are hard to endure.

tried to ameliorate the lives of people in the tenements

How do improve and better relate to one another, in the sense of help?

Both improve and better are general and interchangeable and apply to what can be made better whether it is good or bad.

measures to further improve the quality of medical care
immigrants hoping to better their lot

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of help
Verb
The goal is for the endowment to help pay the costs to create 16,000 spaces for preschool, infants, and toddlers by 2030. Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 8 June 2025 Union organizers and local residents Ardelia Aldridge and Alejandro Maldonado helped organize a cleanup effort in the neighborhood. Nathan Solis, Los Angeles Times, 8 June 2025
Noun
There are several ways to get help filing your taxes. Ana Rocío Álvarez Bríñez, The Courier-Journal, 6 Feb. 2023 That’s when content teams should get some help from AI tools in handling the details. John Hall, Forbes, 5 Feb. 2023 See All Example Sentences for help
Recent Examples of Synonyms for help
Verb
  • Alpine Rescue, Guardia di Finanza Rescue and Italy's Carabinieri (a military organization similar to the police) all assisted in the recovery efforts.
    Michael Nied, People.com, 2 June 2025
  • The Aurora Police Department, Aurora Township Fire Department and Kane County Drone Team assisted the Kane County Sheriff’s Office in connection with the incident, per the release.
    Aurora Beacon-News, Chicago Tribune, 2 June 2025
Verb
  • The agent, already familiar with your size, preferences and style history, evaluates how each option might suit your physique, identifies the best price across retailers and finalizes the purchase, thus conserving your time and alleviating decision fatigue.
    Sandeep Shivam, Forbes.com, 6 June 2025
  • To alleviate the disparity between funders’ donation caps and nonprofits’ need for resources, Godoy suggests nonprofits share services and spaces — such as collectively pitching in for an accountant or having joint office areas — to spur teamwork while cutting costs.
    Isabel Rivera, Miami Herald, 6 June 2025
Verb
  • While much of the existing research in Australia on intimate partner violence has rightly focused on survivors and their stories, Martin said, this study takes a new approach by studying perpetrators to better understand how to prevent violence.
    Lex Harvey, CNN Money, 5 June 2025
  • Surgical removal of the tumor or blood vessel abnormality may prevent seizure recurrence.
    Heidi Moawad, Verywell Health, 5 June 2025
Verb
  • Ernst defended the bill, arguing that those eliminated from these programs would be people who were not eligible to benefit from them in the first place.
    Alana Wise, NPR, 31 May 2025
  • While more than 90% of individuals would benefit from delaying Social Security until that age, only about 10% actually do, according to a 2023 paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research.
    Lorie Konish, CNBC, 31 May 2025
Verb
  • Pollination season was windy, cold and rainy — but supply chain problems began to improve and inventory came down.
    Annika Merrilees, Sacbee.com, 7 June 2025
  • Levy said that if the political climate doesn’t improve, business for him will likely be even worse in 2026.
    Jason Carroll, CNN Money, 7 June 2025
Noun
  • Trained Individuals People who train to increase their breath-holding abilities, like free divers—people who swim or dive beneath the water’s surface to a considerable depth and without assistance from a breathing device–have reportedly been able to hold their breath for three minutes or longer.
    Patty Weasler, Verywell Health, 4 June 2025
  • Time and again, both parties have reinforced systemic inequality through cuts to housing assistance, erosion of the social safety net, and a growing trend to treat housing as a commodity rather than a public good, the book argues.
    Ericka Taylor, NPR, 4 June 2025
Noun
  • Sam Bennett, who scored twice in Florida’s Game 1 loss, capitalized on the man advantage with the game’s first goal.
    Adam Lichtenstein, Sun Sentinel, 7 June 2025
  • This pitching staff is getting slugged, rendering whatever advantage it’s created on swing-and-miss much less impactful.
    Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 6 June 2025
Noun
  • Yet, despite these factors, 63% of employers still planned to add permanent staff in the first half of 2025.
    Duane Tursi, Forbes.com, 10 June 2025
  • At the same time, Hegseth also faces reports of dysfunction and infighting among his personal staff at the Pentagon.
    Anne Flaherty, ABC News, 10 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Help.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/help. Accessed 16 Jun. 2025.

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