How to use helplessly in a sentence

23 example sentences · adverb

Helplessly means without protection or assistance. Example: “The fish flopped helplessly in the tiny remaining pool.”

Examples of helplessly by meaning

adverbWithout protection or assistance.

The fish flopped helplessly in the tiny remaining pool.
The day of our arrival two belugas had accidentally become grounded in the shallows of a river delta near the station, and now that the tide had gone out, they seemed helplessly stuck.1989 May, Jeff MacInnis, “Braving the Northwest Passage”, in National Geographic, volume 175, number 5, pages 594-595

adverbWithout the ability to help oneself.

The boy rolled on the floor laughing helplessly.

adverbWithout the ability to react actively.

The spectators gaped helplessly as the balloon approached the power lines.

More sentences with helplessly

As u helplessly toddle on stage a stagehand comes up beside the director.2021 April 9, @str8jacker, Twitter. From the entry potty princess
She rests her blow-dry against his belly as Ollie stands there helplessly.2012, Polly Williams, The Angel at No. 33, London: Headline Review, →ISBN, page 151. From the entry blow-dry
Chet and Wende looked helplessly at each other on the backbench of the Ford van.2003, Coby Derek James, Mugged in Marseilles, →ISBN, page 5. From the entry backbench
He stumbles forward helplessly as something terrible happens to his back.1992, Neal Stephenson, Snow Crash, page 284. From the entry ball-peen hammer
Mother stood helplessly at the edge of teenage, a housedressed figure waiting with after-school bread and jelly.1980, Marion Duckworth, The Greening of Mrs. Duckworth, Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., →ISBN, page 16. From the entry housedressed
Brute spread his hands helplessly: “To think soch a fine woman should have soch a grateless child!”1942 March 27, Rupert Hughes, “His Fabulous Fortune”, in Chicago Daily Tribune, volume CI, number 74, Chicago, Ill., page 35, column 8. From the entry grateless
He waved his hands helplessly around the hilt of his sword, as if it were surrounded by an invisible shield.2024, Jim Genzano, Castle and Glass: A Stranger World Adventure. From the entry unswing
When she saw her handsome Master wolving down his food, Hua Qiyue retreated helplessly to one side and tried to cultivate.2022, Zhuo Hua, “His Secret”, in The General’s Genius Daughter, Beijing Book Co. Inc., →ISBN. From the entry wolve down
Under certain circumstances a given person acts intelligently and under different circumstances the same person will act helplessly.1976, Carlo M. Cipolla, “Frequency distribution”, in The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity. From the entry given
Walt, stumbling helplessly backward under the irresistible push of Tiny’s weight, kept screeching, “Ya tubba lard, gimme my goddam quarter.”1970, (Unattributed), Easyriders Magazine, page 54. From the entry tubba lard
She dried her eyes and blew her nose and picked up her drink. ¶ Cass stared at her helplessly.1962, James Baldwin, Another Country, New York: Dial, published 1963, Book 1, Chapter 2, p. 89. From the entry freshen
Cripps, bewildered at his friend's Bedlamite departure, stood staring helplessly after him with the ruined picture of Isaiah in his hand.1913, Norman Lindsay, A Curate in Bohemia, Sydney: N.S.W. Bookstall Co., published 1932, page 86. From the entry bedlamite
The veins in his forehead stood out stagnantly; his blood-red eyes looked mournfully, helplessly at Ursula's, filling swiftly with maternal solicitude.1907, Barbara Baynton, edited by Sally Krimmer and Alan Lawson, Human Toll (Portable Australian Authors: Barbara Baynton), St Lucia…. From the entry stagnantly
His opponent got a grape vine on, dragged him helplessly across deep sands and changed his hold to a reversed bear hug.2013, R L Fanthorpe, Lionel Fanthorpe, Patricia Fanthorpe, The Watching World. From the entry grape vine
Tina shrugged her shoulders, nodding helplessly.2000, Jacqueline Guest, Rookie Season, James Lorimer & Company,, →ISBN, page 5. From the entry Qapla
Helplessly hoping to open doors of perception To the mysteries and the quandaries of mankind; The secrets of the universe are all we wish to find.2015, William Austin Moore, The Keys to the Doors of Perception. From the entry doors of perception
When the moment came, the carts would be driven out from under the prisoners, leaving them dancing the Tyburn jig, their legs paddling helplessly in the air.2010 January 12, Sara Starbuck, Dread Pirate Fleur and the Hangman's Noose, page 342. From the entry dance
See his little toothie?’ He stared up at me helplessly from the pillow, and knew I could no more save him than I could my uncle.2008, Linda Grant, The Clothes on Their Backs, W F Howes Ltd, →ISBN, page 346. From the entry toothie
Heroin appeared on the streets of our town for the first time, and Innie watched helplessly as his sixteen-year-old brother began taking the train to Harlem to cop smack.2005, Martin Torgoff, Can't Find My Way Home, Simon & Schuster, page 10. From the entry cop

Meaning of helplessly

adverb Without protection or assistance.
adverb Without the ability to help oneself.
adverb Without the ability to react actively.

Full definition of helplessly

Questions about helplessly in a sentence

How do you use helplessly in a sentence?: Helplessly is used as an adverb. For example: “The fish flopped helplessly in the tiny remaining pool.”
What is a short sentence with helplessly?: “Tina shrugged her shoulders, nodding helplessly.”
What does helplessly mean?: Helplessly means without protection or assistance.

Adapted from Wiktionary: helplessly (page history and authors) and the entries each sentence comes from. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws chose the sentences, left out offensive ones and quotations older than 1900, and marked the word in each. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Cite this page: “How to use helplessly in a sentence.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sentences/helplessly. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.