Meanings
helen1
plural helens
- anatomyEither of a pair of curved, spine-like appendages on some hyoliths.
Helen2
plural Helens
- Greekcountableuncountablehuman sciencesThe daughter of Zeus and Leda, considered to be the most beautiful woman in the world; her abduction by Paris brought about the Trojan War.
Fools on both sides! Helen must needs be fair, When with your blood you daily paint her thus.
c. 1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Troylus and Cressida”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i] - countableuncountableA female given name from Ancient Greek.
Gemma followed her, thinking that Helen seemed rather an old-fashioned and elegant name for this rumpled young mother.
2003, Deborah Crombie, A Share in Death, HarperCollins, →ISBN, page 1892 more examples
"Is her name Ellen or Helen, Miss Viner? I thought —" Miss Viner closed her eyes. "I can sound my h's, dear, as well as anyone, but Helen is not a suitable name for a servant. I don't know what the mothers in the lower classes are coming to nowadays."
1928, Agatha Christie, The Mystery of the Blue Train...in 1910 she brought Helen into the world, the little female, or "mujercita", as her mother called all the babies, naming her after the glittery label on a facial ointment, The Helen of Troy Beauty Pomade, said to eradicate wrinkles, to soften and add a youthful glow to the user's skin - a fortuitous choice because, of all the sisters, she would be the most beautiful and, never growing old, would always possess the face of a winsome adolescent beauty.
1993, Oscar Hijuelos, The Fourteen Sisters of Emilio Montez O'Brien, →ISBN, page 6 - A place in the United States:
- countableuncountableA minor city in White County, Georgia.
- countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in St. Mary's County, Maryland.
- countableuncountableA census-designated place in Raleigh County, West Virginia.
plural Helens
- Any of various papilionid butterflies of the genus Papilio.
The Yellow Helen […] belongs to a clade of related swallowtail butterflies, the helenus group, or Helens, which are typically large, predominantly black butterflies with long tails and a large, white area on the hindwings.
2017, David G. James, The Book of Caterpillars, page 58
Origin
- Ancient GreekἙλένη
- LatinHelena
- FrenchHélène
- EnglishHelen
From French Hélène, from Latin Helena, from Ancient Greek Ἑλένη (Helénē). Doublet of Elaine.
More words from French, Latin, Ancient Greek
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek Ἑλένη
- Ἑλένη (Helénē)(Greek mythology) the daughter of Zeus and Leda
Arabic هِيلِين, هِيلِين
- هِيلِين (hīlin)female given name
- هِيلِين (helen)female given name
Bulgarian Еле́на
- Еле́на (Eléna)female given name
Catalan Helena, Helena
- Helena(Greek mythology) the daughter of Zeus and Leda
- Helenafemale given name
- Elenafemale given name
Chinese Mandarin 海倫 /海伦
- 海倫 /海伦 (Hǎilún)female given name
Czech Helena
- Helenafemale given name
Danish Helene
- Helenefemale given name
Dutch Eliene, Leen
- Elienefemale given name
- Leenfemale given name
Esperanto Heleno
- Helenofemale given name
Estonian Helena
- Helenafemale given name
Finnish Helena
- Helenafemale given name
French Hélène, Hélène
- Hélène(Greek mythology) the daughter of Zeus and Leda
- Hélènefemale given name
German Helena, Helene
- Helena(Greek mythology) the daughter of Zeus and Leda
- Helenefemale given name
Greek Ελένη, Ελένη
- Ελένη (Eléni)(Greek mythology) the daughter of Zeus and Leda
- Ελένη (Eléni)female given name
- Έλενα (Élena)female given name
Hawaiian Helena
- Helenafemale given name
Hebrew הִילְנִי
- הִילְנִי (heléni)female given name
Hungarian Helené, Ilona
- Helené(Greek mythology) the daughter of Zeus and Leda
- Ilonafemale given name
- Helénfemale given name
- Helénafemale given name
Icelandic Elín, Helena
- Elínfemale given name
- Helenafemale given name
Irish Léan
- Léanfemale given name
Italian Elena, Elena
- Elena(Greek mythology) the daughter of Zeus and Leda
- Elenafemale given name
Japanese ヘレン
- ヘレン (Heren)female given name
Korean 헬레나, 헬렌
- 헬레나 (Hellena)female given name
- 헬렌 (Hellen)female given name
Latin Helena
- Helena(Greek mythology) the daughter of Zeus and Leda
Latvian Helēna
- Helēnafemale given name
Lithuanian Elena
- Elenafemale given name
Norwegian Bokmål Helene
- Helenefemale given name
Persian هلن
- هلن (helen)female given name
Polish Helena, Helena
- Helena(Greek mythology) the daughter of Zeus and Leda
- Helenafemale given name
Portuguese Helena, Elena
- Helena(Greek mythology) the daughter of Zeus and Leda
- Elenafemale given name
- Helenafemale given name
Romanian Ileana
- Ileanafemale given name
Russian Еле́на, Еле́на
- Еле́на (Jeléna)(Greek mythology) the daughter of Zeus and Leda
- Еле́на (Jeléna)female given name
- Алёна (Aljóna)female given name
- Хе́лен (Xɛ́len)female given name
Scottish Gaelic Eilidh
- Eilidhfemale given name
Slovak Helena
- Helenafemale given name
Spanish Helena, Elena
- Helena(Greek mythology) the daughter of Zeus and Leda
- Elenafemale given name
Swedish Helena
- Helenafemale given name
Turkish Aleyna
- Aleynafemale given name
Ukrainian Оле́на, Альона
- Оле́на (Oléna)female given name
- Альона (Alʹona)female given name
- Елінаfemale given name
Vietnamese Hêlêna, Êlêna
- Hêlênafemale given name
- Êlênafemale given name
- Hà Liênfemale given name
Welsh Elen
- Elenfemale given name
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with helen
All rhymes →Anagrams
Cite this entry
helen. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/helen
“helen.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/helen. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “helen,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/helen.
Source: helen on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.