relationship

[ ri-ley-shuhn-ship ]

noun

1. a connection, association, or involvement.

   Synonyms: kinship, alliance, dependence

2. connection between persons by blood or marriage.

   Synonyms: consanguinity, affinity

3. an emotional or other connection between people:

   the relationship between teachers and students.

4. a sexual involvement; affair.

relationship

/ rɪˈleɪʃənʃɪp /

noun

1. the state of being connected or related
2. association by blood or marriage; kinship
3. the mutual dealings, connections, or feelings that exist between two parties, countries, people, etc

   a business relationship

4. an emotional or sexual affair or liaison
5. See relation
   logic maths another name for relation

Other Words From

• prere·lation·ship noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of relationship¹

First recorded in 1735–45; relation + -ship

Synonym Study

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.

Example Sentences

When you talk about the difference between an events business and a community business, it’s mainly one of a lasting relationship.

From Digiday

Unless you decide that the value here is never in what they say, they do, but in whatever else is valuable about the relationship.

From Ozy

It taught me to never “network,” but to build actual authentic relationships.

From Fortune

Erdogan inherited a strong relationship with Israel when he swept to national power almost 20 years ago.

From Ozy

So, I asked Thom Mayer whether his relationship with Allen Sills had been adversarial.

From Freakonomics

Will the Pam/Krieger relationship be an ongoing theme this season?

From The Daily Beast

In a romantic relationship, facing humiliation or awkwardness is a strong possibility.

From The Daily Beast

A 2012 study found that fully 76% of Duke students want to be in a committed romantic relationship.

From The Daily Beast

That explanation is believable…but increasingly less so when you hear Jay talk about the nature of his relationship with Adnan.

From The Daily Beast

Most of us have an unhealthy relationship with anger, writes author and psychologist Andrea Brandt.

From The Daily Beast

Edmund de la Pole, earl of Suffolk, on account of his near relationship to the house of York, beheaded.

From Project Gutenberg

You can easily see that in this relationship he must have had a large influence both over the king and over the people.

From Project Gutenberg

I shall always have a sense of relationship with you quite different from anything I have ever known.

From Project Gutenberg

As far as you know there isn't a human being living who has any claim to your services by reason of blood relationship.

From Project Gutenberg

The commercial notion is not perhaps quite so distinct here, but the underlying legal relationship is sufficiently marked.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• accord
• affair
• communication
• contact
• exchange
• liaison
• link
• marriage
• rapport
• relation
• tie