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My experiences in China suggests that when someone says
我帮你
Wǒ bāng nǐ
I help you
they will not only just "help" you, but do whatever it is for you. For example, someone might say 我帮你拿着 when they mean they will carry something for you.
Question: When someone says 我帮你, does it imply they will assist you in doing something, or they will do it for you?
I want to clarify whether my experiences are typical.
Normally, 我帮你 suggests that I will help you by covering it for you. Example, 我帮你写 means I will help you by writing it for you.
Well, 我帮你一块写 means I will assist you in writing(you two write together).
P.S. 一块，一起 and 一同 are synonyms.
"帮" in "我帮你" is a shorter form of the verb "帮助" (help)". "我帮你" means "I help you"
Example:
A: "who will help me?" - "谁会帮(助)我?"
B: "I will help you" - "我会帮(助)你"
"帮" in [我帮你 + verb phrase] can be an auxiliary verb for "help" or a function word for "for (in behalf of)".
Example:
"我帮你對付他 = "I help you to deal with him" or "I deal with him for you"
"我帮你拿着" = "I help you to carry it" or "I carry it for you"
In addition to other answers, 帮 would sometimes mean "to do a favor", usually a trivial one. As per your question, in this context 帮 implies that the helper does everything by himself.
For example:
你可以帮我关一下门吗 - Would you do me a favor and close the door?
麻烦你帮我结账 - May I have the bill? (literally: May I bother you to help me pay the bill?)
If the "favor" is more than just trivial (e.g, to help someone pay their debts), it is considered a kind of help in the wider sense.
I think it may depend on the context...
For example, when someone says 我帮你吃, it might be because there're too much food, and he will help you eat some of it. Or if you're incapable, that person will just help you but not eat. So I would say it really depends on the context...
