relate to

phrasal 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

Recent Examples on the Web

Biden’s meetings with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. are expected to produce announcements relating to infrastructure, energy security, digital connectivity and maritime security. —Alexandra Banner, CNN, 11 Apr. 2024

Things got a little strange when Microsoft’s Copilot randomly generated a request asking for information related to voter fraud during the 2020 election—even without the prompt specifying the year. —Makena Kelly, WIRED, 11 Apr. 2024

So, she’s done a lot of work for the transgender community — scar-covering tattoos related to top surgery and things like that. —David Hudnall, Kansas City Star, 10 Apr. 2024

But San Diego officials did not clearly define performance measures related to much of that spending or make sure that service providers properly monitored outcomes for the work they were paid to perform, state auditors said. —Jeff McDonald, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Apr. 2024

Kelli Prather, the community activist and one-time candidate for Cincinnati mayor and U.S. Senate, was sentenced Tuesday to seven years in prison for fraud related to COVID-19 relief. —The Enquirer, 10 Apr. 2024

The trademark office has the ability to do World Wide Web searches and cite different examples of use, relating to generic names or cultural dishes. —Sam Stone, Bon Appétit, 10 Apr. 2024

To make this work, artists will often choose to promote a specific section of a song, usually a short, catchy hook containing a lyrical tagline that others can deeply relate to. —Howard Murphy, Rolling Stone, 9 Apr. 2024

The other hardy plants-trees, shrubs, and perennials-will survive April’s weather challenge as related to cold weather. —Chris McKeown, The Enquirer, 30 Mar. 2024