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helping

HEL-ping/ˈhɛlpɪŋ/

Noun pluralhelpings

2 meanings of helping

Practice

  1. 1
    assistingverb
    Present participle of help.

    Volunteers are helping rebuild homes after the flood.

    He spent the afternoon helping his neighbor move furniture.

    UsageTakes a bare verb or to: helping rebuild or helping to rebuild; also helping someone with something.

    Note

    One -ing spelling does double duty. After be it is a participle (volunteers are helping), and in noun positions it is a gerund (helping others takes patience). It carries the full range of help, including serving at table, as in helping a guest to more soup. In Hong Kong and Singapore English, it can also mean doing something on someone's behalf.

  2. 2
    portionnouncountable
    A portion of food served to or taken by one person, or an amount of something thought of as such a portion.

    The waiter brought generous helpings of pasta to every table.

    Grandma always insisted on a third helping before dessert.

    UsageUsually a helping of something, often with a number or size: a second helping, a generous helping.

    Note

    Behind this sense is the table use of help to, as in help yourself to: a helping is what you serve yourself, or what someone helps you to. The word keeps the feel of food dished out at a meal.

helping is a form of help

help, verb: To make it easier for someone to do something, or to be of use, by giving assistance or support. Full entry

Forms
helphelps he/she/ithelping -ing formhelped past tense, past participle
Spelling
help → helping: add -ing

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Origins

Meaning 2

In English terms this is help with the suffix -ing; Middle English already had it as helping, also spelled helpinge or helpynge.

Meaning 1

From Middle English helpinge (also helpynge, helpinde, helponde, helpand), from Old English helpende, the present participle of helpan ('to help'), equivalent to help plus -ing. It is cognate with Dutch helpend, German helfend, and Swedish hjälpande.

Checked 5 Nov 2026 · 4 facts

  • Helping derives from Middle English helpinge, with the variants helpynge, helpinde, helponde, and helpand. en.wiktionary.org
  • The Middle English forms derive from Old English helpende, the present participle of helpan, meaning 'to help'. en.wiktionary.org
  • Helping is equivalent to help plus -ing. en.wiktionary.org
  • Helping is cognate with Dutch helpend, German helfend, and Swedish hjälpande. en.wiktionary.org