avail, help, service
(noun) a means of serving; āof no availā; āthereās no help for itā
avail
(verb) use to oneās advantage; āHe availed himself of the available resourcesā
avail, help
(verb) take or use; āShe helped herself to some of the office suppliesā
avail
(verb) be of use to, be useful to; āIt will avail them to dispose of their bootyā
Source: WordNet® 3.1
avail (third-person singular simple present avails, present participle availing, simple past and past participle availed)
(transitive, often, reflexive) To turn to the advantage of.
(transitive) To be of service to.
(transitive) To promote; to assist.
(intransitive) To be of use or advantage; to answer or serve the purpose; to have strength, force, or efficacy sufficient to accomplish the object.
(India, Africa, elsewhere proscribed) To provide; to make available.
• disavail
avail (plural avails)
Effect in achieving a goal or aim; purpose, use (now usually in negative constructions). [from 15thc.]
(now only US) Proceeds; profits from business transactions. [from 15thc.]
(television, advertising) An advertising slot or package.
(US, politics, journalism) A press avail.
(British, acting) Non-binding notice of availability for work.
(oil industry) A readily available stock of oil.
(obsolete) Benefit; value, profit; advantage toward success. [15th-19thc.]
(obsolete, poetic) Effort; striving.
• (success or benefit): Very often encountered in negative phrases, such as of or to no or little avail.
• Alavi, Alvia, Avila
Source: Wiktionary
A*vail", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Availed (p. pr. & vb. n. Availing.] Etym: [OE. availen, fr. F. ad) + valoir to be worth, fr. L. valere to be strong, to be worth. See Valiant.]
1. To turn to the advantage of; to be of service to; to profit; to benefit; to help; as, artifices will not avail the sinner in the day of judgment. O, what avails me now that honor high ! Milton.
2. To promote; to assist. [Obs.] Pope. To avail one's self of, to make use of; take advantage of. Then shall they seek to avail themselves of names. Milton. I have availed myself of the very first opportunity. Dickens.
A*vail", v. i.
Definition: To be of use or advantage; to answer the purpose; to have strength, force, or efficacy sufficient to accomplish the object; as, the plea in bar must avail, that is, be sufficient to defeat the suit; this scheme will not avail; medicines will not avail to check the disease. "What signs avail " Milton. Words avail very little with me, young man. Sir W. Scott.
A*vail", n.
1. Profit; advantage toward success; benefit; value; as, labor, without economy, is of little avail. The avail of a deathbed repentance. Jer. Taylor.
2. pl.
Definition: Proceeds; as, the avails of a sale by auction. The avails of their own industry. Stoddard.
Syn.
– Use; benefit; utility; profit; service.
A*vail", v. t. & i.
Definition: See Avale, v. [Obs.] Spenser.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
22 February 2025
(noun) the use of closed-class words instead of inflections: e.g., āthe father of the brideā instead of āthe brideās fatherā
Decaffeinated coffee is not caffeine-free. Studies from the National Institute of Health (US) have shown that virtually all decaf coffee types contain caffeine. A 236-ml (8-oz) cup of decaf coffee contains up to 7 mg of caffeine, whereas a regular cup provided 70-140 mg.
