Hello I'm Emma from mmmEnglish!
Are you here for some help with your English?
Well, you're in the right place!
many different ways to ask for help in English.
I'm going to share some common expressions
confidently ask for help in English.
modal verbs you can use when asking for help
some really common expressions with you.
Like, to give or lend someone a hand,
All of these expressions will be useful
when asking for help from an native English speaker.
Speaking of helping someone out,
have you heard of the HiNative app?
from native English speakers and
help other people out who are learning your
It's an app that works just like a language exchange
between native speakers of just about any language.
You can ask a question and other native speakers
in the community will help you to answer it.
So you know sometimes you come across
English phrases that you just can't find in a dictionary.
Some random line from a movie or
HiNative can get you the answers
So let's say you're Spanish and
you heard some words in an English song that you just
I'll be loungin' on the couch just chillin' in my Snuggie.
It's like having a native English-speaking friend
that you can ask for help at any time!
You type your question and a native English speaker
usually in just a couple of minutes.
You can even upload a voice recording to get feedback
A Snuggie is a brand of super comfortable clothing,
So chillin' in my Snuggie means
to relax whilst wearing my Snuggie.
Cool!
When other people learning your native language
have questions, then you can help them out too!
It's so cool! It's free to download
and it works on any smartphone!
Getting help from native English speakers is a
So when you need help, how can you ask for it?
Well let's start with the basics.
There are a few modal verbs that are really helpful
Can,
which means are you able to help?
which means is it possible for you to help?
Or would, "would you help me?"
which means are you willing to help?
Other modal verbs are possible too but these three
are the most common ones when asking for help.
If you need to be really polite when asking for help
like when you're talking to a colleague
or your boss or a customer for example,
it's a good idea to include "would you mind"
Notice how the verb form following
changes when you're using "would you mind".
The main verb is always in the -ing form.
So these modal verbs are often used to request for help.
But what about some of the other expressions that
I mentioned at the start of this video?
To give someone a hand or to lend someone a hand.
This is another really common way
I use this expression all the time.
Can you give me a hand for a minute?
It's a casual, relaxed way to ask for help.
Usually it's used when what you're asking
doesn't require a huge amount of effort
from the person that you're asking for help.
Here are some more examples in different contexts
Can you give me a hand with these shopping bags?
to give her a hand in the shop on Thursday.
Thanks so much for giving us a hand yesterday!
My brother gave me a hand moving furniture
It was so hot! I wish you had given me a hand.
See how the verb form changes with these expressions
Mum needs someone to give her a hand.
Thanks so much for giving us a hand.
I wish you had given me a hand.
Help me out, help you out, help them out.
When you're asking someone to do something for you
or to help you solve a problem,
you can use this phrasal verb.
But you usually need to say who needs the help.
I need to translate this sentence. Can you help me out?
I'd really like to help you out,
but I'll be working on Saturday.
John always helps his neighbours out.
when he bought his first house.
And in this context, this means
To help out, it can be with assistance
Now, all those examples were transitive phrasal verbs.
I told you who was receiving the help.
But "help out" can also be intransitive
but that's when we know who is being helped
So let me show you with some examples.
Could you work in the shop next Tuesday?
I know that's usually your day off...
It's clear what I'm going to help out with.
I know you've got lots on at the moment.
Would you like the kids to help out tomorrow?
Now if you want, you can add 'with'
So the structure is to help out with something
or to help somebody out with something.
Can you help me out with this question?
My brothers and I are lucky my mum and dad
usually help us out with money if we really need it.
Okay here's an interesting expression that will
I wonder if you've heard of it.
Well it's something that you can do for someone
And it's not specific but you can ask someone to do
You can ask them to do something for you
and the way to do that is to say,
or "Can I ask you for a favour?"
Now when you're asking for help,
these are great expressions to use.
Once you've asked someone for a favour, you can also
So if you've helped me in the past
to show you how much I appreciate it,
then I can use this expression "I owe you a favour"
It's my turn to do something for you.
In fact, you can say "let me return the favour"
for the person who previously helped you.
The person who helped you in the past.
You can say "I want to return the favour"
you need to remember that this is a countable noun.
So you need to include 'a' when you're
talking about a single favour.
You also need to remember these collocations.
These are the words that you'll often hear and see
And to return a favour or return the favour.
For example, he really did me a favour
John keeps asking me for favours, and I've had enough!
She returned the favour last week,
she took me to a football game!
You know what? I could use some help.
This expression is quite vague,
it's not being specific about what help you need
or who you need the help from.
And it's quite useful in a professional context
when you might not want to ask for help
but still you would like someone to help you out.
You can make this request a little more direct
by saying "I could use your help"
instead of "some help".
In this expression you must use 'could'
the expression doesn't sound right if you say
I could use your help moving this furniture.
I could use your help with dinner.
You can also use "I could use a hand" in the same way.
I could use a hand, these bags are really heavy!
Paul looks like he could use a hand.
Five ways to ask for help in English naturally.
Now idiomatic expressions and phrasal verbs
like the examples in this lesson are a little tricky
but try to focus on these ones this week.
Ask for help from as many people as you can and offer
your help to others too! It will be great practice.
As an extra bonus I'll share an interesting expression
Have you ever heard anyone say
"You scratch my back and I'll scratch yours!"
It's used when two people both do something
so that they're both being helped.
The HiNative app is a perfect example of this.
When you help from a native English speaker,
you can return the favour by helping them to
understand an expression in your native language.
If you enjoyed this lesson, make sure you subscribe
by clicking that red button down there
and check out some of my other lessons right here!