relationship
Americannoun
-
a connection, association, or involvement.
- Synonyms:
- kinship, alliance, dependence
-
connection between persons by blood or marriage.
- Synonyms:
- consanguinity, affinity
-
an emotional or other connection between people.
the relationship between teachers and students.
-
a sexual involvement; affair.
noun
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the state of being connected or related
-
association by blood or marriage; kinship
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the mutual dealings, connections, or feelings that exist between two parties, countries, people, etc
a business relationship
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an emotional or sexual affair or liaison
-
logic maths another name for relation
Synonym Usage
Relationship, kinship refer to connection with others by blood or by marriage. Relationship can be applied to connection either by birth or by marriage: relationship to a ruling family. Kinship generally denotes common descent and implies a more intimate connection than relationship: the ties and obligations of kinship.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of relationship
Explanation
When you're in a relationship, you're emotionally involved or at least connected in some way. If you're related to somebody — your parents, your aunts and uncles, your cousins — you share a family relationship with them. You can also use relationship to describe dealings between various groups, as “Members of the European Union have a relationship of economic interconnectedness,” or “A lease helps define your relationship with your landlord.” You'll also see relationship used with interactions that don't directly involve people. In many of these cases, the word relation is better. For example, in the sentence "We are always looking at the relationship between ticket price and sales," it would be better to use relation.
Vocabulary lists containing relationship
Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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The SAT: Language of the Test, List 4
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TEKS ELAR Academic Vocabulary List (5th-7th grades)
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Given your distant relationship with your former sister-in-law and the fact that your divorce was a difficult one, it seems unlikely that you were named as a beneficiary on her Fidelity account.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026
"Everyone who knew him had a unique relationship with him. He made every person feel special and never failed to bring happiness," Ahmed said.
From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2026
Dr. Fauci gloats to himself about his working relationship with Mr. Trump until late in the spring.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026
Richards already had a shaky relationship with the “Jeopardy!” audience, as he was given the job after overseeing the search and audition process to replace Trebek, creating the appearance of self-dealing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
He was twenty-nine years old, and though there’d been a few brief liaisons, at no time had he experienced a meaningful romantic relationship.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
Mastercard expanded its stablecoin relationships to crypto companies BitGo and Kraken in the quarter.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 30, 2026
First developed in the 1950s by British psychiatrist John Bowlby, attachment theory suggests that the bonds we form with early caregivers shape our expectations of relationships.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
Grandparenting also can bring lots of stress when adult children are faltering as parents, when grandparents are unable to have expected interactions and relationships with grandchildren or when grandchildren have severe emotional or physical problems.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
“In addition, such outcomes could weaken Delaware Life’s regulatory relationships and damage its reputation, which could erode its competitive position,” S&P said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
The set of pitches, or notes, that are used, and their relationships to each other, makes a big impact on how the music sounds.
From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
