re|late ◆◇◇ /r I le I t/ (relates , relating , related )
1 VERB If something relates to a particular subject, it concerns that subject. □ [V + to ] Other recommendations relate to the details of how such data is stored.
2 VERB The way that two things relate , or the way that one thing relates to another, is the sort of connection that exists between them. □ [V + to ] The course investigates how language relates to particular cultural codes. □ [V n + to ] He felt the need to relate his experience to that of people from different cultures. □ [V n] …a paper in which the writer tries to relate his linguistic and political views. □ [V ] At the end, we have a sense of names, dates, and events but no sense of how they relate.
3 VERB If you can relate to someone, you can understand how they feel or behave so that you are able to communicate with them or deal with them easily. □ [V + to ] He is unable to relate to other people. □ [V ] When people are cut off from contact with others, they lose all ability to relate.
4 VERB If you relate a story, you tell it. [FORMAL ] □ [V n + to ] There were officials to whom he could relate the whole story. □ [V n] She related her tale of living rough. SYNONYMS relate VERB
1
concern: The bulk of the book concerns Sandy's two middle-aged children.
refer to: The term electronics refers to electrically-induced action.
pertain to: I would much rather that you asked Mrs Zuckerman any questions pertaining to herself.
4
telclass="underline" He told his story to The Sunday Times and produced photographs.
recount: He then recounted the story of the interview for his first job.
describe: Just before his death he described seeing their son in a beautiful garden.
report: 'He seems to be all right now,' reported a relieved Taylor.
re|lat|ed ◆◇◇ /r I le I t I d/
1 ADJ If two or more things are related , there is a connection between them. □ The philosophical problems of chance and of free will are closely related.
2 ADJ [v-link ADJ ] People who are related belong to the same family. □ [+ to ] …people in countries like Bangladesh who have been able to show they are related to a spouse or parent living in Britain.
3 ADJ If you say that different types of things, such as languages, are related , you mean that they developed from the same language. □ [+ to ] Sanskrit is related very closely to Latin, Greek, and the Germanic and Celtic languages. □ …closely related species. SYNONYMS related ADJ 1
associated: Rap groups have been associated with vandalism.
linked: Liver cancer is linked to the hepatitis B virus.
connected: They are not connected with our company.
-related /-r I le I t I d/ COMB [usu ADJ n] -related combines with nouns to form adjectives with the meaning 'connected with the thing referred to by the noun'. □ …performance-related pay.
re|la|tion ◆◆◇ /r I le I ʃ ə n/ (relations )
1 N‑COUNT [usu pl] Relations between people, groups, or countries are contacts between them and the way in which they behave towards each other. □ Greece has established full diplomatic relations with Israel.
2 → see also industrial relations , public relations , race relations
3 N‑COUNT [usu sing] If you talk about the relation of one thing to another, you are talking about the ways in which they are connected. □ [+ of ] It is a question of the relation of ethics to economics.
4 N‑COUNT Your relations are the members of your family. □ …visits to friends and relations.
5 → see also poor relation
6 PHRASE You can talk about something in relation to something else when you want to compare the size, condition, or position of the two things. □ The money he'd been ordered to pay was minimal in relation to his salary.
7 PHRASE If something is said or done in relation to a subject, it is said or done in connection with that subject. □ …a question which has been asked many times in relation to Irish affairs. SYNONYMS relation NOUN
3
link: …the link between smoking and lung cancer.
similarity: She is also 25 and a native of Birmingham, but the similarity ends there.
connection: He has denied any connection to the bombing.
4
relative: Get a relative to look after the children.
family: Her family came to Los Angeles at the turn of the century.
re|la|tion|ship ◆◆◇ /r I le I ʃ ə nʃ I p/ (relationships )
1 N‑COUNT The relationship between two people or groups is the way in which they feel and behave towards each other. □ …the friendly relationship between France and Britain. □ …family relationships.
2 N‑COUNT A relationship is a close friendship between two people, especially one involving romantic or sexual feelings. □ Both of us felt the relationship wasn't really going anywhere.
3 N‑COUNT The relationship between two things is the way in which they are connected. □ [+ between/of ] There is a relationship between diet and cancer. [Also + to ] SYNONYMS relationship NOUN