Define the word relationships

Last Updated:
5 Apr 2023
— Updated example sentences

English[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From relation +‎ -ship.

Pronunciation[edit]

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ɹɪˈleɪ.ʃən.ʃɪp/, [ɹɪˈleɪ.ʃn̩.ʃɪp]
• (US) IPA^(key): /ɹɪˈleɪ.ʃənˌʃɪp/, [ɹɪˈleɪ.ʃn̩ˌʃɪp]
• Hyphenation: re‧la‧tion‧ship

Noun[edit]

relationship (plural relationships)

1. Connection or association; the condition of being related.

   • 2011 February 1, Istvan Csicsery-Ronay, Jr., The Seven Beauties of Science Fiction‎^[1], Wesleyan University Press, →ISBN, pages 102-103:

     But some discussion of the complex relationship between “allohistory” and sf is appropriate here, as the genres overlap in certain ways. Classical allohistory— such as Trevelyan’s «What if Napoleon had won the Battle of Waterloo?» and Churchill’s «If Lee had not won the Battle of Gettysburg» —is a rigorously consistent thought-experiment in historical causality.

2. (mathematics) The links between the x-values and y-values of ordered pairs of numbers especially coordinates.

   • 2013 August 10, Schumpeter, “Cronies and capitols”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8848:

     Policing the relationship between government and business in a free society is difficult. Businesspeople have every right to lobby governments, and civil servants to take jobs in the private sector.

3. Kinship; being related by blood or marriage.
4. A romantic or sexual involvement.

   They have been in a relationship for ten years, but have never married.

   • 1975 March 17, Marian Christy, «Suzy Chaffee, A Liberated Beauty», The Lebanon Daily News

     I’m not advocating sexual promiscuity but I think it’s possible for a woman to have many kinds of sexual relationships with many men and that shouldn’t affect the status of the marriage.

   • 2000, April 8, Dorthea Straus, «Oates on Marilyn: Men, drugs, tragedy», The Baltimore Sun

     Her most satisfying sexual relationship seemed to be a threesome with Charles Chaplin Jr. and Eddy Robinson Jr., the spurned sons of famous film fathers.

5. A way in which two or more people behave and are involved with each other

   I have a good working relationship with my boss.

   • 2012 August 5, Nathan Rabin, “TV: Review: THE SIMPSONS (CLASSIC): “I Love Lisa” (season 4, episode 15; originally aired 02/11/1993)”, in (Please provide the book title or journal name):

     “I Love Lisa” opens with one of my favorite underappreciated running jokes from The Simpsons: the passive-aggressive, quietly contentious relationship of radio jocks Bill and Marty, whose mindless happy talk regularly gives way to charged exchanges that betray the simmering resentment and disappointment perpetually lingering just under the surface of their relationship.

6. (music) The level or degree of affinity between keys, chords and tones.

Hyponyms[edit]

• joking relationship

Derived terms[edit]

• entity-relationship diagram
• entity-relationship model
• relationship anarchy
• relationshipless
• relationshiply
• relationshippy
• relationshopping

Translations[edit]

See also[edit]

• relate
• relation
• relative

I don’t even know what the metaphor means, it could allude to so many things: love & relationships, actual food, love & relationships… ❋ Barbylon (2001)

�And what you give up in relationships is intimacy. ❋ Unknown (2010)

A lot of people are saying that the possibility of abusive husbands or problems in relationships is not an issue here because a woman only has to notify her husband and does not need his consent. ❋ Unknown (2005)

Finding great people to work with and establishing win-win relationships is very rewarding. ❋ Unknown (2005)

Adding the quiet power of patience to our relationships is a soothing balm that transforms them. ❋ Wendy Strgar (2010)

Feeling happy and secure in our relationships is a goal many people strive for, but in times of need the emotionally insecure partners may be doing us a favor by being more alert to possible danger. ❋ Unknown (2010)

Funnily enough, it reminded me of the insight I once had about men in relationships, which is that the central question for men is not about love, but about what they can do. ❋ Unknown (2008)

My husband hasn’t had a lot of experience in long term relationships, which is why he developed the porn habit in the first place, but now that he’s married I feel like porn is bachelor behavior. ❋ Professor Foxy (2009)

I don’t think there is a big change in the size expect as we noted in Europe we are seeing a lot more interest in our Advanced Investment Solutions which tend to be bigger projects that we’re doing and bigger, longer term relationships which is something we like. ❋ Unknown (2009)

One of the main relationships is between a white American boy and an African-American girl, one is a close friendship between an African-American boy and a Canadian girl, one between an Indian-Australian girl and an English boy, one is a relationship between two white Australians and the main character’s parents are a Japanese man and a white Australian woman. ❋ Unknown (2009)

People want to be in relationships, they hate being alone, so they go about every which way of making them happen. ❋ Unknown (2009)

But then, I tend to think that all “real” people are symbolic in the external world, and that the subtext of relationships is more real than the relationships themselves. ❋ Unknown (2009)

This thought: ‘I tend to think that all “real” people are symbolic in the external world, and that the subtext of relationships is more real than the relationships themselves.’ is just exquisite and I can only thank you for it. ❋ Unknown (2009)

So I began to wonder: how much of what people know about relationships is repeated as fact but is more like fiction? ❋ Dr. Terri Orbuch (2010)

relationships, [either] [way] your [fucked] ❋ Mimmleflog (2006)

“Is that who [Barbara] is currently fucking?”….”How can she be “[in a relationship]”,when her [sorry ass] is married?”….”.Why is she pretending to be available when she’s not?”. ❋ Jim6471 (2020)

It’s okay that we had a fight in front of you, we’re in a relationship.
[It’s fine] that we called each other [pet names] and kissed in front of you, we’re in a relationship.
It’s okay that we had sex in [the other room] and you heard it, we’re in a relationship. ❋ Ereck Flowers (2010)

First Star [Communications] saw [a 10]% [profit] increase within 12 months of incorporating Relationshipism. ❋ Yvé (2019)

Guy One: «You bought a boat?»
Guy Two: «Yeah.»
Guy One: «[What are you going] to call it?»
Guy Two: «The Relationship.»
Guy One: «So what happened to ‘The Relationship’?»
Guy Two: «It [sunk] after six months. I couldn’t [devote] my time to maintain it.» ❋ FrickleFrackle22 (2009)

Guy 1: yeah! I finally asked Sarah out and she said yes!
Guy 2: Well done mate!
[-2] weeks later-
Guy 1: Oh my god! Sarah is driving me mad! I’m gonna end it!
Guy 2: [I’ve got your back], [bitches be crazy]!
-2 more weeks later-
Guy 1: Why’d I end it with Sarah? She was so hot!
Guy 2: That’s a relationship for you! ❋ Some Guy 090 (2013)

After six months of dating, talking every day, and great sex, [he says] «[You came] to [my house]» and «are acting like we’re together» …bullshit relationship ❋ Bettertohaveloved (2011)

David did [Miranda’s] [laundry], clearly they are [in a relationship]. ❋ Mirambo55 (2017)

[Stan] [ended] his life because of a [faulty] relationship. ❋ Anonymous (2006)

— Thesaurus —
1 evidence of their relationship no walk of shame, she/he has different clothing on when leaving in the morning, affinity, they understand who is picking up the tab, they are not having [abc sex], or married.
2 they drunk text and dial each other, strange but excepted.
3 i think one of them did a relationship once and knows, maybe?
4 wow! how do you [get into something] you understand – you don’t (read frequent)
DERIVATIVES
Relation•shit•less adjective
1 the end of their relationship romance, (love) affair, love, liaison, amour, partnership.
2 it never happened, any of it, (love) affair, even if you did get a free dinner.
3 [the toothbrush] dose not count, nor the box of tampons or other crap left, even if you thought it was for you, they are items that any on could use, see having a drawer (your items).
4 but i was tagged shit! ❋ Dkkohn (2010)