helping

noun

help·​ing ˈhel-piŋ How to pronounce helping (audio)
1
: a portion of food : serving
2
: dose sense 3
large helpings of reportage and interviewsStefan Kanfer

Examples of helping in a Sentence

He had two helpings of carrots. Can I give you a second helping?
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
For a vegetarian version, omit the meat entirely and add an extra helping of black beans or another bean, such as kidney. Lynda Balslev, Mercury News, 24 Oct. 2025 Here are four ways to get a helping of awe during your next visit, but there’s even more where these came from. Brian Higgins, Outside, 24 Oct. 2025 However, Sinbad would sneak extra helpings of the other feline's food, who wouldn't finish. Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Oct. 2025 But this specific take on the agony and the, well, extra helping of agony that parenthood often feels like is all hers. David Fear, Rolling Stone, 10 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for helping

Word History

First Known Use

1883, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of helping was in 1883

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Helping.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/helping. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.

Kids Definition

helping

noun
help·​ing ˈhel-piŋ How to pronounce helping (audio)
: a portion of food : serving

More from Merriam-Webster on helping

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!