This is the 8811th most frequent Russian word.
помогали
"Помогали" means "helped" in English.
The word 'помогали' is used in its past tense form to describe an action of assistance that occurred in the past.
Когда мы были в деревне, мы помогали бабушке собирать урожай.
When we were in the village, we helped our grandmother harvest the crop.
Here, 'помогали' expresses recurring or habitual help provided as part of an ongoing activity in the past.
В волонтёрской группе мы помогали строить школу в бедном районе.
In the volunteer group, we helped build a school in a poor area.
In this case, 'помогали' indicates a collective continuing action where assistance is given by multiple people in the past.