Helplessness — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

powerlessness revealed by an inability to act

the state of needing help from something

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/hˌaɪpoʊtʃˈɪl/

🇬🇧British English

/hˈɛlpləsnəs/

🇮🇳Indian English

/hˈɛlpləsnəs/

3 syllables Say it as /hˌaɪpoʊtʃˈɪl/.

Examples

in spite of their weakness the group remains active

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

impuissance weakness

Parts of Speech

noun	powerlessness revealed by an inability to act “in spite of their weakness the group remains active”
noun	the state of needing help from something
noun	a feeling of being unable to manage

Word Forms

helpless	adjective	lacking in or deprived of strength or power
weak	adjective	not having authority, political strength, or governing power
impuissant	adjective	lacking physical strength or vigor

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

Hilflosigkeit

Ohnmacht, die sich in der Handlungsunfähigkeit offenbart

🇫🇷French

impuissance

impuissance révélée par une incapacité à agir

🇪🇸Spanish

impotencia

impotencia revelada por la incapacidad de actuar

🇮🇹Italian

impotenza

impotenza rivelata dall’incapacità di agire

🇳🇱Dutch

hulpeloosheid

machteloosheid die blijkt uit een onvermogen om te handelen

🇵🇹Portuguese

desamparo

impotência revelada por uma incapacidade de agir

🇷🇺Russian

беспомощность

бессилие, проявляющееся в неспособности действовать

India

🇮🇳Hindi

बेबसी

कार्य करने में असमर्थता से शक्तिहीनता का पता चलता है

🇧🇩Bengali

অসহায়ত্ব

ক্ষমতাহীনতা কাজ করতে অক্ষমতা দ্বারা প্রকাশিত

🇮🇳Tamil

உதவியற்ற தன்மை

செயல்பட இயலாமையால் வெளிப்படுத்தப்படும் சக்தியின்மை

🇮🇳Telugu

నిస్సహాయత

🇮🇳Marathi

असहायता

शक्तीहीनता कार्य करण्यास असमर्थतेद्वारे प्रकट होते

🇮🇳Gujarati

લાચારી

કાર્ય કરવામાં અસમર્થતા દ્વારા શક્તિહીનતા પ્રગટ થાય છે

🇮🇳Kannada

ಅಸಹಾಯಕತೆ

ಕಾರ್ಯನಿರ್ವಹಿಸಲು ಅಸಮರ್ಥತೆಯಿಂದ ಬಹಿರಂಗಗೊಂಡ ಶಕ್ತಿಹೀನತೆ

🇮🇳Malayalam

നിസ്സഹായത

പ്രവർത്തിക്കാനുള്ള കഴിവില്ലായ്മ വെളിപ്പെടുത്തിയ ശക്തിയില്ലായ്മ

🇮🇳Punjabi

ਬੇਬਸੀ

ਕੰਮ ਕਰਨ ਦੀ ਅਸਮਰੱਥਾ ਦੁਆਰਾ ਪ੍ਰਗਟ ਕੀਤੀ ਸ਼ਕਤੀਹੀਣਤਾ

🇵🇰Urdu

بے بسی

بے اختیاری عمل کرنے میں ناکامی سے ظاہر ہوتی ہے۔

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

无助

无能为力表现为无能为力

🇯🇵Japanese

無力

行動できないことで明らかになる無力さ

🇰🇷Korean

무력감

행동할 수 없음으로 드러나는 무력함

🇻🇳Vietnamese

sự bất lực

sự bất lực được bộc lộ bởi sự không có khả năng hành động

🇹🇭Thai

การทำอะไรไม่ถูก

ความไร้อำนาจเผยให้เห็นจากการไร้ความสามารถที่จะกระทำการ

🇮🇩Indonesian

ketidakberdayaan

ketidakberdayaan yang diungkapkan oleh ketidakmampuan untuk bertindak

🇵🇭Filipino

kawalan ng kakayahan

kawalan ng kapangyarihan na ipinakikita ng kawalan ng kakayahang kumilos

🇲🇾Malay

ketidakberdayaan

ketidakberdayaan yang didedahkan oleh ketidakupayaan untuk bertindak

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

العجز

العجز الذي يكشفه عدم القدرة على التصرف

🇮🇷Persian

درماندگی

ناتوانی ناشی از ناتوانی در عمل

🇹🇷Turkish

çaresizlik

harekete geçememenin ortaya çıkardığı güçsüzlük

🇮🇱Hebrew

אָזְלַת יַד

חוסר אונים המתגלה מחוסר יכולת לפעול

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'helplessness'?

The primary meaning of 'helplessness' is 'powerlessness revealed by an inability to act'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'helplessness' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'helplessness' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'helplessness' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'helplessness' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'helplessness' in your daily reading?

Very Often

Occasionally

Rarely

Never

Do you find 'helplessness' easy to spell?

Yes, very easy

Somewhat easy

A bit confusing

Extremely hard

In your opinion, does the word 'helplessness' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

Positive

Neutral

Gloomy

Vibrant

Which age group is most likely to use 'helplessness' in regular conversations?

Kids (3-12)

Teens (13-19)

Adults (20-60)

Seniors (60+)

How likely are you to use 'helplessness' in a professional email?

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Somewhat likely

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Never

Would you classify 'helplessness' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

Casual

Slang

Archaic

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