relationship
Americannoun
-
relationships
plural
-
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
-
the state of being connected or related
-
association by blood or marriage; kinship
-
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:
When Joe Biden was president, the relationship was very enmeshed, right?
From Slate ● Aug. 6, 2026
Every person needs to eat, which means every person has a relationship with food that extends beyond the plate.
From Salon ● Aug. 6, 2026
New findings from an international research team based in the Netherlands, USA, China and UK suggest that this relationship is more complicated than previously assumed.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 6, 2026
For a long time, Anderson’s relationship with Dana Scully was complicated.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
Chapter Summary: Scientists are only recently beginning to investigate the relationship between music and the brain as the field of neuroscience develops.
From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin
The latest measures reflect growing US concern over Cuba's military relationships with Moscow and Beijing.
From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026
Instead, they show that the relationships among major parts of the global ocean circulation system can change depending on the climate and the physical boundaries of the ocean.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 6, 2026
WPP also held on to existing relationships with other clients like Skechers and Huawei.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
We start talking about relationships and unhealthy withdrawal and letting things fester to the point that when the emotions come out, it feels abrupt and the other person has no idea what’s going on.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 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.
