helpless

Valid in Scrabble

Scrabble points
13
Words With Friends
15
Letters
8
Pronunciation
/ˈhɛlplɪs/

Definition of helpless

5 senses · 1 part of speech · etymology included

adj

  1. Unable to defend oneself.
    “Then when you find yourself lyin' helpless in her arms You know you really love a woman”
    “Rana Thanoptis: Are we good? Can I go? Shepard: You conducted brutal experiments on helpless test subjects. You helped Saren. You don't get to live.”
See all 5 definitions

adj

  1. Unable to defend oneself.
    “Then when you find yourself lyin' helpless in her arms You know you really love a woman”
    “Rana Thanoptis: Are we good? Can I go? Shepard: You conducted brutal experiments on helpless test subjects. You helped Saren. You don't get to live.”
  2. Lacking help; powerless.
    “A gaoler struck him, pushing him back in place in the hopeless, helpless line of prisoners.”
  3. Unable to act without help; needing help; feeble.
  4. Uncontrollable.
    “a helpless urge”
  5. (obsolete)From which there is no possibility of being saved.
    “For, while they fly that gulf's devouring jawes, They on the rock are rent and sunck in helplesse wawes.”

Definitions from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA.

Etymology

From Middle English helples, from Old English *helplēas (“helpless”) from Proto-Germanic *helpōlausaz, equivalent to help + -less. Compare Dutch hulpeloos (“helpless”), German hilflos (“helpless”), Danish hjælpeløs (“helpless”) and Swedish hjälplös (“helpless”).

Hooks

1 extension · 1 front

A single letter you can add to helpless to make another valid word.

Find your best play with helpless

See every word you can make from a set of letters that includes helpless, or browse word lists you can mine for high-scoring plays.