assistance

assistance — noun

1. the act of supporting someone who is struggling with a task, problem, or difficu

1.nounB2
Definition

the act of supporting someone who is struggling with a task, problem, or difficult situation, so that the work becomes easier or possible to finish.

Example

Mei needed assistance with her tax forms, so she called the local advice centre.

assistance with [task]

The hikers reached the summit with the assistance of an experienced guide from Nepal.

with the assistance of [person]

Common collocations
  • technical assistance
  • medical assistance
  • legal assistance
  • financial assistance
  • request assistance
  • provide assistance
  • offer assistance
  • assistance with paperwork
Synonyms
  • help

    everyday and neutral; assistance sounds more formal and official

  • aid

    often used for emergency or large-scale support, e.g. medical or foreign aid

  • support

    broader — can include emotional or financial backing, not only practical help

Antonyms
  • hindrance

    something that gets in the way and slows progress

  • obstruction

    more deliberate blocking, often by a person or rule

Grammar Patterns

assistance with [task]

assistance from [person/group]

with the assistance of

Usage Note

More formal than 'help'. Common in workplace, government, and customer-service contexts (e.g. notices, manuals, support lines). Almost always uncountable — say 'a lot of assistance', not 'an assistance' or 'assistances'.

Common Mistakes

She gave me an assistance with the report.
She gave me assistance with the report.
assistance is uncountable; no 'a/an' and no plural.
Thank you for your assistance to fix my computer.
Thank you for your assistance in fixing my computer.
use 'assistance in + -ing' or 'assistance with + noun', not 'assistance to + verb'.

2. in fixed polite phrases, especially in shops, hotels, or offices, used to talk a

2.nounC1
Definition

in fixed polite phrases, especially in shops, hotels, or offices, used to talk about the action of helping a particular person at a particular moment.

Example

Good morning, sir — may I be of assistance?

be of assistance — polite shop or hotel formula

The new map proved to be of great assistance to the lost tourists in Kyoto.

be of great assistance to [person]

Common collocations
  • be of assistance
  • be of great assistance
  • be of little assistance
  • be of no assistance
  • may I be of assistance
Synonyms
  • service

    as in 'at your service' — similarly polite and old-fashioned

  • use

    as in 'be of use' — same pattern, slightly less formal

Grammar Patterns

be of assistance (to someone)

be of great/little/no assistance

Usage Note

Almost always appears inside the fixed pattern 'be of (great/little/any/no) assistance', not as a free noun. Distinguish from sense 1: sense 1 names help in general ('I need assistance'); sense 2 frames a single act of helping inside a polite formula.

Common Mistakes

Can I do you an assistance?
Can I be of assistance?
the fixed phrase uses 'be of', not 'do' or 'a/an'.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All four words describe one party making a difficult task easier for another, but they sit at different points on the formality scale. 'Help' is the everyday default — short, neutral, and used freely in conversation ('Can you help me lift this box?'). 'Assistance' is the formal cousin: it appears on official notices, in customer service, and in business writing ('Thank you for your assistance with the audit'). 'Aid' tends to imply organised or emergency support, often delivered by an institution — medical aid, foreign aid, first aid. 'Support' is the broadest of the four; besides practical help it also covers emotional backing and ongoing financial sponsorship ('She gave me her full support after the accident'). A useful test: if you can swap in 'help' without sounding strange, the situation is probably casual; if 'help' feels too plain — say, in a hotel lobby — reach for 'assistance'.

help ↗aid ↗support ↗assistance ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • technical assistance
  • financial assistance
  • legal assistance
  • medical assistance
  • humanitarian assistance
  • roadside assistance
  • language assistance

Adverbs

Phrases

  • with the assistance of
  • come to someone's assistance
  • be of assistance
  • request assistance
  • offer assistance
  • provide assistance

Prepositions

  • with (a task)
  • from (a person/body)
  • in (doing something)
  • to (the person helped)

Etymology

LatinOld FrenchMiddle EnglishEnglish

Borrowed into English in the late 1300s from Old French 'assistance', built on Latin 'assistere' — formed from 'ad-' (to, towards) plus 'sistere' (to take a stand, cause to stand). The root image is of someone standing beside another person, ready to lend a hand. The same Latin verb gives us 'assist' and the legal 'assistant'.