Meaning & use
cry for help
Last updated
Meanings
phrasecountable
An action or statement that shows someone is in emotional pain and needs support.
Grammar: Countable: you can say 'a cry for help' or 'cries for help'; it is not used as a verb.
Patterns
- a cry for help
- be a cry for help
- see something as a cry for help
Her sudden silence was really a cry for help.
The teacher recognized the boy's bad behavior as a cry for help.
He posted a long, sad message online—it felt like a cry for help.
phrasecountable
A literal shout or call asking for rescue in a dangerous situation.
Grammar: Also countable; often used in the plural when many people call out.
Patterns
- a cry for help
- hear a cry for help
- send out a cry for help
We heard a cry for help from the river.
The trapped climber's cry for help was faint but clear.
They sent out a cry for help on the radio.
Word forms
| plural | cries for help |
|---|
Common combinations
- a desperate cry for help
- The note was a desperate cry for help.
- interpret something as a cry for help
- The police interpreted the vandalism as a cry for help.
- a cry for help from someone
- It was a cry for help from a lonely teenager.
- ignore a cry for help
- We must not ignore a cry for help.
Synonyms and how they differ
Commonly confused: cry for help or cry out for help?
cry for help vs cry out for help
This is a verb phrase meaning to shout loudly for assistance; 'a cry for help' is a noun phrase and often figurative.
Practice
After his parents divorced, his failing grades were seen as a ______.
Choose one answer.
The fixed phrase is 'a cry for help'. 'Cry of help' is not used; 'cry to help' would mean a shout in order to help someone, and 'cry for helping' is not grammatical.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “cry for help”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.