as in powerlessness
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Recent Examples of helplessness
For the Ukrainian leadership in Kyiv, the occupation of the power plant marked a singular moment of terror and helplessness in a year that had plenty of both.
—
Simon Shuster, Time, 23 Oct. 2025
For the diaspora characters, hearing the lyrics sharpens both their feelings of solidarity and helplessness.
—Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2025
Some canines might feel helplessness, unable to control the environment, with some becoming aggressive or hyperactive.
—Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Oct. 2025
His humor has always been rooted in humiliation and helplessness, in the fragile border between male entitlement and panic.
—Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 9 Oct. 2025
This sense of helplessness, embarrassment and utter misery is what so many scam victims report feeling.
—Madhusree Mukerjee, Scientific American, 8 Oct. 2025
No one knows why the processes of evolution recruited the lachrymal glands to convey this helplessness.
—Big Think, 23 Sep. 2025
That helplessness amid an unrelenting, unforgiving illness.
—David Oliver, USA Today, 11 Sep. 2025
This can lead to a sense of helplessness and fear, hindering creativity and collaboration.
—Kotter, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2025
Simon Shuster, Time, 23 Oct. 2025
For the diaspora characters, hearing the lyrics sharpens both their feelings of solidarity and helplessness.
—Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2025
Some canines might feel helplessness, unable to control the environment, with some becoming aggressive or hyperactive.
—Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Oct. 2025
His humor has always been rooted in humiliation and helplessness, in the fragile border between male entitlement and panic.
—Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 9 Oct. 2025
This sense of helplessness, embarrassment and utter misery is what so many scam victims report feeling.
—Madhusree Mukerjee, Scientific American, 8 Oct. 2025
No one knows why the processes of evolution recruited the lachrymal glands to convey this helplessness.
—Big Think, 23 Sep. 2025
That helplessness amid an unrelenting, unforgiving illness.
—David Oliver, USA Today, 11 Sep. 2025
This can lead to a sense of helplessness and fear, hindering creativity and collaboration.
—Kotter, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for helplessness
Noun
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Would-be autocrats create environments of fear and powerlessness, using intimidation, overwhelming force or political and legal attacks, and other coercive tactics to force acquiescence and chill democratic pushback.—
Shelley Inglis,
The Conversation,
19 Oct. 2025
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This grim reality evokes a sense of sorrow and powerlessness among women in Paina Bujurg.—
Aishwarya S. Iyer,
CNN Money,
16 Oct. 2025
Noun
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But tragedies like these also reflect the vulnerability of this refugee population – with the overall reduction in support causing a cascade effect for those already living on a knife edge of survival.—
Rebecca Wright,
CNN Money,
25 Oct. 2025
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That said, vulnerabilities in its Comet browser are cause for concern.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
25 Oct. 2025
Noun
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While pregnancy at any age sparks a host of rapid breast changes that may temporarily up your cancer risk in the few years immediately following, facing those fluctuations at age 35-plus—when your baseline susceptibility is higher simply because of age—just further raises that risk.—
Erica Sloan,
SELF,
1 Oct. 2025
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Older adults who cycle regularly are likely a healthier subgroup, and cycling may also serve as a marker of favorable genetics, with risk lowest among those without genetic susceptibility to dementia, Verghese said.—
Kristen Rogers,
CNN Money,
20 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Helplessness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/helplessness. Accessed 28 Oct. 2025.
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