somebody can not help but do something
- somebody can not help but do something
-
used to say that it is impossible to prevent or avoid sth
•
I can't help thinking he knows more than he has told us.
•
He can't help being ugly.
•
She couldn't help but wonder what he was thinking.
•
It couldn't be helped (= there was no way of avoiding it and we must accept it).
•
He never does more work than he can help
(= he does as little as possible).
•
I always end up having an argument with her, I don't know why, I just
can't help it.
•
I couldn't help it if the bus was late
(= it wasn't my fault).
•
She burst out laughing— she
couldn't help herself (= couldn't stop herself).
•
She won't be invited again,
not if I can help it (= if I can do anything to prevent it).
Useful english dictionary.
2012.
Look at other dictionaries:
somebody can (not) help (doing) something — sb can (not) help (doing) sth | sb can not help but do sth idiom used to say that it is impossible to prevent or avoid sth • I can t help thinking he knows more than he has told us. • He can t help being ugly. • … Useful english dictionary
help — help1 W1S1 [help] v [: Old English; Origin: helpan] 1.) [I and T] to make it possible or easier for someone to do something by doing part of their work or by giving them something they need ▪ If there s anything I can do to help, just give me a… … Dictionary of contemporary English
help — 1 /help/ verb 1 MAKE POSSIBLE OR EASIER (I, T) to make it possible or easier for someone to do something by doing part of their work or by giving them something they need: If there s anything I can do to help, just give me a call. | She devoted… … Longman dictionary of contemporary English
help — [[t]he̱lp[/t]] ♦ helps, helping, helped 1) VERB If you help someone, you make it easier for them to do something, for example by doing part of the work for them or by giving them advice or money. [V to inf/inf] He has helped to raise a lot of… … English dictionary
can — 1 strong verb (modal verb) 1 to be able to: He s so tall he can touch the ceiling. | This machine can perform two million calculations per second. | I can t remember where I put it. | They have everything that money can buy. | The police still… … Longman dictionary of contemporary English
help — I UK [help] / US verb Word forms help : present tense I/you/we/they help he/she/it helps present participle helping past tense helped past participle helped *** Get it right: help: The verb help is not used with the ing form of another verb. It… … English dictionary
help — help1 [ help ] verb *** 1. ) intransitive or transitive to give someone support or information so that they can do something more easily: If you are finding that difficult I could help you. Mary was anxious to help. help someone (to) do something … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
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Somebody Else's Problem — (also known as Someone else s problem or SEP ) is an effect that causes people to ignore matters which are generally important to a group but may not seem specifically important to the individual. Author Douglas Adams s description of the effect … Wikipedia
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