Word to ask for help

There are many situations where we may need someone’s help. In this lesson, we’re going to learn some important Russian words and expressions to ask for help in any situation. I really hope it will be useful for you and you will learn how to use these words and expressions correctly.

But first, let’s learn the basic nouns and verbs:

помощь [pomashch]- help

помогать [pamagat’] – to help

помочь [pamoch]- to help (perfective)

We can also use the verb выручить (help out): Я могу выручить, если надо. – I can help out if you need me.

поддержка [padderzhka] – support

поддерживать [padderzhivat’] – to support

поддержать [padderzhat’] – to support (perfective)

Two important words to ask for help in any situation

Let’s start with the common word “help!”, which is помогите [pa-ma-gee-te] in Russian. It literally means “help me”. It is a very common word, you can use it whenever you’re in trouble. For example, you’ve been just robbed by someone on the street. So, the phrase “Помогите! У меня украли сумку!” (Help me! They stole my bag!) will be suitable for this situation. Another example, “Помогите мне, пожалуйста, обменять валюту.” (Hlep me, please, to exchange my money.). So, you can use помогите in every situation when you need someone’s help. Well, if you need a help from your friend you use informal word помоги [pa-ma-gee]. It would sound weird if you say “помогите” to your friend.

Another word you can use to ask for someone’s help is спасите [spa-see-te] (literally: rescue me!). It is used when you’re in danger. For example, you fell in the river but you are not able to swim. You are sinking and screaming спасите, so that people could hear and rescue you.

Мне нужна помощь. – I need help.

Помогите! – Help!

Use помогите when addressing a person formally or two or more people and помоги if you are adressing a friend/relative.

Помогите мне, пожалуйста. – Help me, please!

Помоги мне. – Help me.

Помоги мне найти работу, когда меня уволят. – Help me get a new job after I get fired.

Помоги (мне) загрузить его в машину. – Help me get him to the car.

Пожалуйста, помогите мне её успокоить. – Please help me calm her down.

Извините, не могли бы вы мне помочь? – Excuse me, can you help me?

Вы мне не поможете? – Won’t you help me?

Ты мне не поможешь? / Не поможешь мне? – Won’t you help me? (informal)

Можно попросить тебя об (одной) услуге? – Can I ask you for a favour?

Asking for help in a polite way

Now let’s talk about less dangerous situations, where you can adress someone in a polite way to ask for help. For example, you’re lost in Russian city and want to find a way to the hotel (or to another place). You can ask for help using these phrases:

Извините, пожалуйста. Я потерялся. Как мне попасть в (the name of the place)?
Excuse me, please. I’m lost. How can I get…? 

Простите, не могли бы вы мне помочь? Мне нужно в (the name of the place). Как мне туда попасть? 
Excuse me. May you help me? I need to get to… How can I get there?

Помогите мне, пожалуйста, найти дорогу… 
Help me, please to find a way… 

How to offer help

Я могу вам помочь? – Can I help you?

Чем я могу вам помочь? – How can I help you?

Чем я могу тебе помочь? – How can I help you? (informal)

Не волнуйтесь. Я вам помогу. – Don’t worry. I’ll help you.

К сожалению, я не могу помочь. – Unfortunately, I can’t help.

С этим я тебе не могу помочь. – I can’t help you with that.

Прости(те), ничем не могу помочь. – There’s nothing I can do. I’m sorry.

У меня ничего не получилось бы без поддержки моей любящей семьи. – None of this would have been possible without the support of my loving family.

Спасибо, что поддержал меня в этом. – Thank you for supporting me on that.

You can watch the video version of this lesson below or over on my YouTube channel where there are more helpful lessons.

Phrases to appreciate someone’s help

If someone helped you and you want to show gratitude, you can simply use спасибо (thank you) or большое спасибо (thank you very much). There are some other ways to appreciate someone’s help:

Вы мне очень помогли. Спасибо.
You helped me a lot. Thank you.

Спасибо за помощь.
Thank you for your help.

Что бы я без вас делал!
What would I do without you!

Don’t forget to watch my video to make sure you’ve remembered all the words.

When we’re stuck, we might ask somebody for help. The phrase “I need your help” is a common way to do this, but it’s not the most polite way to ask. This article will explore the synonyms of “I need your help” and how you can say it more politely in a professional context.

What Can I Say Instead Of “I Need Your Help”?

In this article, we will look at the following polite alternatives to saying “I need your help:”

• I’m hoping you can assist me
• I’m hoping you can help me
• I have an issue that you may be able to help me with
• I require your assistance
• I was wondering if you might be able to help me
• If you have the time, I could use your help

The preferred version is “I’m hoping you can assist me” when we’re asking for somebody to help us out. In a professional context (mostly on email), we must be as polite as possible before asking for someone to aid us.

I’m Hoping You Can Assist Me

We’ll start with the most effective polite version to say. “I’m hoping you can assist me” (or “I am” if you want to remove the contraction) is a great way to start.

“I’m hoping you can assist me” is a way to encourage someone to help you as politely as possible. “Hoping” means you desire help from the recipient of the email, though you don’t outright expect it from them.

When you use this phrase, you’re expecting help out of the kindness of the recipient’s heart rather than telling them that they “need” to help you. It’s much better to use words like “hoping” in this case.

Also, “assist” is a polite word compared with “help,” which is another reason we think it’s the best version to use.

The definition of “assist,” according to The Cambridge Dictionary, is “to help.” It couldn’t be simpler to explain, and if a word has the same meaning as “help” as “assist” does, then it’s likely that you’ll find the more polite version of the two.

It would help you to see a few examples of the phrase in action, though, so we’ve included a few example email formats:

• Dear sir,
• I’m hoping you can help me with something very important to me.
• If you have the time, I’d love to hear what you’ve got to say.
• Kind regards,
• Jeremy Peacock

• Dear ma’am,
• I am hoping you can help me with the situation that’s presented itself to us.
• I’m currently quite short-staffed and could do with some backup.
• I look forward to hearing from you,
• Mr. Schumacher

I’m Hoping You Can Help Me

“I’m hoping you can help me” is another great option. The only reason we don’t think it’s the preferred version is that “help” is a less polite word than “assist” (though both are overall very polite).

“I’m hoping you can help me” is a great choice for professional contexts. We can use it when we want to get help from somebody by using the verb “hoping” again to stress that we’re not dependent on it, but we could really do with their insight.

We take the stress away from the person we’re asking when we use words like “hoping.” It means we could use their help, but if they’re too busy to provide it, we won’t mind if we have to do it ourselves or find the help elsewhere.

Again, it might help you if you could see some example emails of how we might use this phrase:

• Dear Mr. Johnson,
• I am hoping you can help me because I’ve got some important documents to deliver.
• Let me know when you have a chance to discuss matters further.
• Kind regards,
• Dominic Summers

• Dear Madam Jones,
• I have an issue with one of my employees, and I’m hoping you can help me.
• I’d love to discuss the issue with you further over a lunch meeting if you have the time.
• I look forward to hearing back from you,
• Allan Walters

I Have An Issue That You May Be Able To Help Me With

Moving away from the “I’m hoping” phrases, we come to the next most effective choice.

“I have an issue that you may be able to help me with” is a long-winded phrase, but it works well in professional formats. It sets up an issue that you need urgent help with, but using “may” means you understand if it’s not possible for the recipient to help.

If we replaced the “may be able to” with something like “can,” it means we know that the person we’re asking has the capacity to help (which can put a lot of pressure on them). Instead, saying “may be able to” means, “we think you have what we need, but we want to ask first.”

We adopt this method in polite formats when we want to encourage help from the other person without overwhelming them with the possibility of potential getting it wrong (or not being able to help us).

Here are some examples of how we might use it:

• Dear Mr. Tate,
• I have an issue that you may be able to help me with regarding my pay slip.
• If you’re available, I’d like to discuss it with you when you’re next in.
• Kind regards,
• Peter Parkinson

• Dear sir,
• I have an issue that you may be able to help me with.
• There’s no pressure, but I’d appreciate it if you could lend an ear when I next see you.
• Thank you,
• Sarah Woodward

I Require Your Assistance

This next phrase is less polite than the others, but certain situations might depend on it.

“I require your assistance” is something we can say in professional situations when we are someone else’s boss and “require” their attention. We’re not asking for help; we’re simply saying that they must help us in the most professional way.

Generally, we only say this to people that we’re certain can help us. That means they’ll have the relevant qualifications or knowledge that we’re looking for.

You should not use “I require your assistance” when talking to a boss or superior if you’re an employee. You should only use this phrase if you’re already superior, and talking to someone below you that you know can help.

While this phrase isn’t the most polite, it’s still a great option if you’re in a management position. You’re using it to acknowledge someone else’s skills or abilities with something while also showing that you’re still in charge.

Here are some examples to help you understand:

• Dear Thomas,
• I require your assistance with resetting my computer.
• If you could kindly make your way to my office when you have time, that would be grand.
• Kind regards,
• Mr. Tomkins

• Dear Sarah,
• I require your assistance with something related to the incident from yesterday.
• Bring all of the HR documents with you, as we will need these.
• Thank you,
• Mrs. Smith

I Was Wondering If You Might Be Able To Help Me

“I was wondering if you might be able to help me” is another polite phrase to use. We say “wondering” here to encourage the other person to help while also understanding if they cannot help us at that time.

“Wondering” works in this phrase similarly to how “hoping” works in some of the earlier ones. We’re not putting pressure on the other person to help us; we’re simply asking whether they can help and what they’ll do about it if they’re able to.

We typically want to use a verb like “wondering” or “hoping” when we’re trying to be polite. It’s the most effective way to convey our message without risking sounding rude or impatient.

Here are some examples to show you what we mean:

• Dear Mr. Potter,
• I was wondering if you might be able to help me with the upcoming event.
• Of course, I understand if you’re too busy, but I’d appreciate it if you could let me know.
• Kind regards,
• Sarah Tomlinson

• Dear Mrs. Smith,
• I was wondering if you might be able to help me with a personal matter.
• If that’s too much to bear, I understand and will find someone else.
• Thank you,
• George Brown

If You Have Time, I Could Use Your Help

“If you have time, I could use your help” is the last phrase to go through. It’s the least effective but is still much more polite than “I need your help.” We use “If you have time” to tell the other person that there is no rush for their help, we’re simply asking if they can.

“I could use your help” isn’t the most polite phrase, but it works well to show that there is a sense of urgency about our request. Generally, we counter that by saying, “If you have time.”

A simple response with “yes, I have time” or “no, I have no time” is all that we require when writing this in an email.

Here are some examples of its usage:

• Dear Mr. Carter,
• If you have time, I could use your help with something important.
• Let me know if you can make the time for me.
• Kind regards,
• Connor Coombes

• Dear Mrs. Lynchford
• If you have the time, I could use your help with the latest publicity matter.
• I have all the required documents that need filtering.
• Thank you,
• Jessie Parker

You may also like: 10 Formal Replies to “I Need Your Help”