helpline

noun

help·​line ˈhelp-ˌlīn 

 Southern often  ˈhep-,

 also  ˈheəp-

variants or less commonly help line

plural helplines also help lines

: a phone service providing help or assistance: such as

a

: a telephone service that is usually available to the public and that provides advice, support, resources, etc. for some specific purpose (such as crisis intervention)

a free/confidential/24-hour helpline

He's also a peer support specialist for DeQH, a helpline for South Asian LGBTQ people.

—Rose Brennan

Calls to state addiction help lines have risen, as have alcohol use, drug overdoses and relapse rates, experts have said.

—Steve Janoski

… helpline volunteers offer support and basic information, locate treatment options in your area, and can help you find answers to any questions you may have.

—Radhika Menon

b

: a customer service line to provide support (such as technical support) for a product, service, etc.

Before making your purchase, phone the software vendor's customer helpline to make sure customer representatives are knowledgeable.

—Eric Berg

A user's guide, software documentation, and telephone helpline are included.

—Carol Tenopir

All week, Mata and other staffers have spent hours calling help lines set up by drug plan providers, only to get constant busy signals.

—Nicole Foy

Examples of helpline in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The helpline is a confidential, free, 24-hour-a-day, 365-day-a-year, information service, in English and Spanish, for individuals and family members facing mental and/or substance use disorders. —Frank Vaisvilas, Journal Sentinel, 30 Apr. 2024

One-third of people with gambling problems were unaware of the state’s gambling helpline, and half did not know about the state’s centralized self-exclusion program or the tribe’s individual ones. —Mark Pazniokas, Hartford Courant, 13 Feb. 2024

Here’s how to contact them: Call the American Cancer Society helpline at 800-227-2345. —Sarah Klein, TIME, 3 June 2024

Starting on July 16, 2022, people can call 988 for the helpline. —Michelle Marchante, Miami Herald, 1 June 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1965, in the meaning defined above