help

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. v. To give assistance to; aid: I helped her find the book. He helped me into my coat.
2. v. To contribute to the furtherance of; promote.
3. v. To give relief to: help the needy.
4. v. To ease; relieve: medication to help your cold.
5. v. To change for the better; improve: A fresh coat of paint will help a scarred old table.
6. v. To refrain from; avoid or resist. Used with can or cannot: couldn't help laughing.
7. v. To wait on, as in a store or restaurant.
8. v. To be of service; give assistance.
9. n. The act or an instance of helping.
10. n. Aid or assistance.
11. n. Relief; remedy.
12. n. One that helps: You've been a great help. A food processor is a help to the serious cook.
13. n. A person employed to help, especially a farm worker or domestic servant.
14. n. Such employees considered as a group. Often used with the.
15. idiom. help (oneself) to To serve or provide oneself with: Help yourself to the cookies.
16. idiom. help (oneself) to Informal To take (something) without asking permission: The thief helped himself to our family silver.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. To furnish aid to; contribute strength or means to; assist in doing, accomplishing, or attaining anything; assist; aid: as, to help a man in his work; to help one out of difficulties. See to help to, below.
2. To bring succor or relief to; relieve; rescue.
3. To mitigate, as pain or disease; heal, relieve, or comfort, as a person in pain or distress.
4. To mend; repair.
5. To change for the better; remedy: as, he cannot help his deformity.
6. To prevent; avoid; forbear; keep or refrain from: with can or cannot.
7. To increase; aggravate.
8. To aid in going, removing, getting, etc.: with ellipsis of to go, to get, etc.: as, help me in (that is, help me to go in); help me off my horse.
9. To give out in portions.
10. To lend aid; be of use; avail.
11. To serve or distribute food, as at table.
12. n. Assistance; aid given toward doing, accomplishing, or attaining anything, as labor, escape from danger or difficulty, discharge of obligations, etc.
13. n. Remedy; relief; succor; means of deliverance: as, failure is inevitable, there is no help for it.
14. n. A source of aid, relief, or succor; a helper.
15. n. Hence An assistant; a hired laborer or servant; especially, a domestic or household servant; collectively, servants or assistants; the supply of workers.

Wiktionary

1. n. uncountable Action given to provide assistance; aid.
2. n. A person or persons who provide assistance with some task.
3. n. One or more people employed to help in the maintenance of a house or the operation of a farm or enterprise.
4. n. uncountable, euphemistic Correction of deficits, as by psychological counseling or medication or social support or remedial training.
5. v. transitive To provide assistance to (someone or something).
6. v. transitive To contribute in some way to.
7. v. intransitive To provide assistance.
8. v. transitive To avoid; to prevent; to refrain from; to restrain (oneself). Usually used in nonassertive contexts with can.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. v. To furnish with strength or means for the successful performance of any action or the attainment of any object; to aid; to assist; ; -- the following infinitive is commonly used without to
2. v. To furnish with the means of deliverance from trouble
3. v. To furnish with relief, as in pain or disease; to be of avail against; -- sometimes with of before a word designating the pain or disease, and sometimes having such a word for the direct object.
4. v. To change for the better; to remedy.
5. v. To prevent; to hinder; as, the evil approaches, and who can help it?
6. v. To forbear; to avoid.
7. v. To wait upon, as the guests at table, by carving and passing food.
8. v. To lend aid or assistance; to contribute strength or means; to avail or be of use; to assist.
9. n. Strength or means furnished toward promoting an object, or deliverance from difficulty or distress; aid; ^; also, the person or thing furnishing the aid.
10. n. Remedy; relief.
11. n. A helper; one hired to help another; also, thew hole force of hired helpers in any business.
12. n. Local, U. S. Specifically, a domestic servant, man or woman.

WordNet 3.0

1. v. improve the condition of
2. v. abstain from doing; always used with a negative
3. v. contribute to the furtherance of
4. n. a person who contributes to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose
5. v. be of use
6. v. improve; change for the better
7. n. a resource
8. n. a means of serving
9. n. the activity of contributing to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose
10. v. give help or assistance; be of service
11. v. take or use
12. v. help to some food; help with food or drink