reliant

American  

[ri-lahy-uhnt] / rɪˈlaɪ ənt /

adjective

1. having or showing dependence.

   reliant on money from home.

2. confident; trustful.

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Other Word Forms

• overreliant adjective
• reliantly adverb
• unreliant adjective

Etymology

Origin of reliant

First recorded in 1855–60; rely + -ant

Explanation

To be reliant is to depend on someone or something. When you're reliant on a person, you need that person. There are a lot ways people and things can be reliant. Kids are reliant on their parents for food and shelter. We're all reliant on the police to keep us safe, but the police are reliant on the government for funding. Being reliant is about being dependent. If you can do without something, you're not reliant on it. When you feel like you don't need other people, you can say you're self-reliant.

Example Sentences

Rising energy costs could also hit fast-food chains’ expansion plans, especially in China and India that’s particularly reliant on oil import, said Jefferies analyst Andy Barish.

From Barron's • Apr. 21, 2026

However, some cells become especially reliant on glutamine, an amino acid that plays a major role in metabolism.

From Science Daily • Apr. 20, 2026

But by the late 1980s, some key research areas, like computer science, had moved beyond the labs, and Silicon Valley was no longer heavily reliant on the government for contracts or funding.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 20, 2026

Features like endless scroll and recommendation algorithms are reliant on the content being served, he argues, so the features in and of themselves cannot cause harm.

From Salon • Apr. 16, 2026

I would step into 1919 a new person—not Hattie Here-and-There, reliant on relatives to give her a roof and board, but Hattie Inez Brooks.

From "Hattie Big Sky" by Kirby Larson

Related Words

• relying
• subservient
• susceptible