relational

American  

[ri-ley-shuh-nl] / rɪˈleɪ ʃə nl /

adjective

1. of or relating to relations.

2. indicating or specifying some relation.

3. Grammar. serving to indicate relations between various elements in a sentence, as prepositions, conjunctions, etc.

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relational British  

/ rɪˈleɪʃənəl /

adjective

1. grammar indicating or expressing syntactic relation, as for example the case endings in Latin

2. having relation or being related

3. computing based on data stored in a tabular form

   a relational database

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Other Word Forms

• nonrelational adjective
• unrelational adjective

Etymology

Origin of relational

First recorded in 1655–65; relation + -al ¹

Example Sentences

“When people use that term toxic friend-group, what they’re talking about is a classic clique,” said Noëlle Santorelli, a clinical psychologist in Atlanta, who specializes in relational aggression including mean-girl dynamics among teens and adults.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 29, 2026

The pilot will also see staff, students, parents and carers trained in restorative and relational practices in a 90-minute session in January.

From BBC • Nov. 16, 2025

These are very alive, difficult, important, relational situations.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 16, 2025

In 1979, Oracle introduced the first commercial relational database, External link which essentially organizes and manages data sets, calling it Version 2 External link because he didn’t think anyone would buy a Version 1.

From Barron's • Oct. 10, 2025

And that's because of this relational database thing.

From "Things Not Seen" by Andrew Clements

Related Words

• comparative
• related
• relative