A relationship is the way two or more people or things are connected; it can also refer to a romantic or emotional bond between two people. Example: Understanding the relationship between grammar and meaning is key to fluency.
What Does Relationship Mean?
Relationship derives from the verb relate, which comes from the Latin relatus — past participle of referre (to carry back, to refer). The noun suffix -ship (from Old English -scipe) indicates a state, condition, or quality. The word entered English in the 17th century and rapidly became one of the most used nouns in the language.
In everyday English, relationship covers a remarkably wide range of meanings. It can describe a romantic partnership ("they are in a relationship"), a family bond ("her relationship with her father"), a professional connection ("a working relationship"), or a purely abstract link between ideas or phenomena ("the relationship between inflation and unemployment"). This versatility makes it an essential word at B1 level and beyond.
Pay attention to the prepositions that follow it: use relationship with when referring to a person or group ("a close relationship with her mentor"), and relationship between when discussing two things or parties ("the relationship between exercise and mental health"). Using the wrong preposition is one of the most common mistakes learners make with this word.
Example Sentences
| Sentence | Level & usage note |
|---|---|
| She has a good relationship with her teacher. | A2 — relationship with a person; basic sentence pattern |
| They built a strong relationship over many years of working together. | B1 — collocation: build a relationship; past simple narrative |
| Understanding the relationship between grammar and meaning is key to fluency. | B1 — relationship between two abstract concepts; gerund subject |
| The report examined the relationship between social media use and anxiety in teenagers. | B2 — formal/academic register; relationship between two phenomena |
| The causal relationship between early-childhood experience and adult attachment patterns has been extensively documented in the literature. | C1 — academic register; complex noun phrase; collocation: causal relationship |
Collocations
| Collocation | Example |
|---|---|
| close relationship | She has a close relationship with her grandmother. |
| long-term relationship | They have been in a long-term relationship for five years. |
| working relationship | We have developed an excellent working relationship. |
| professional relationship | It is important to maintain a professional relationship with clients. |
| build / develop a relationship | It takes time to build a trusting relationship. |
| maintain a relationship | Long-distance couples often struggle to maintain their relationship. |
| relationship between X and Y | Researchers studied the relationship between diet and cancer risk. |
| relationship with someone | His relationship with his colleagues improved after the team-building day. |
| complex / complicated relationship | The two countries have a complex relationship that dates back centuries. |
| causal relationship | There is a causal relationship between smoking and lung disease. |
Usage Notes
Key Patterns to Know
Use relationship with + person/group: a healthy relationship with her manager
Use relationship between + two things: the relationship between cause and effect
Use be in a relationship to describe romantic status: Are you in a relationship at the moment?
Use have a relationship with to describe an ongoing bond: He has a complicated relationship with money.
In academic writing, relationship often collocates with adjectives like causal, inverse, linear, and complex.
Common Mistakes
Watch Out For
She has relationship with her boss.
She has a relationship with her boss. (always needs an article or determiner)
There is a relationship between her and the problem.
There is a relationship between her performance and her confidence. (use between for two comparable items, not a person + abstract thing)
They made a good relationship quickly.
They built / developed a good relationship quickly. (use build or develop, not make)