relate to

verb

related to; relating to; relates to
1
: to connect (something) with (something else)
Few of the people who became sick related their symptoms to the food they'd eaten the day before.
2
: to understand and like or have sympathy for (someone or something)
I can relate to your feelings.
I've never been able to relate to him very well.
He writes songs that people can really relate to.
3
used to describe how someone talks to or behaves toward (someone else)
How a child relates to her teacher can affect her education.
4
: to be connected with (someone or something) : to be about (someone or something)
The readings relate to the class discussions.
often used as (be) related to
The exam questions are directly related to the readings.

Examples of relate to in a Sentence

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Even though the gut-busting sandwich is now a matter of civic pride because of a TV show that shot it to national acclaim, a consensus on everything else related to an Italian beef might never be reached in this lifetime. Zareen Syed, Chicago Tribune, 22 May 2026 Washington — New technology allowing audio of plane crashes to be extracted from still images has prompted the National Transportation Safety Board to take a rare step of pausing the public release of nearly all information related to its investigations. Alexandra Skores, CNN Money, 22 May 2026 Just as the economic risks of nature loss are coming into sharper focus, companies and their investors are facing mixed signals from governments and standard-setting organizations over what they will be required to disclose related to these risks. Mindy Lubber, Forbes.com, 22 May 2026 White did not provide information about any potential charges related to the child’s access to an unsecured gun. Angie Dimichele, Sun Sentinel, 22 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for relate to

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Cite this Entry

“Relate to.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/relate%20to. Accessed 24 May. 2026.

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