reliance

noun

re·​li·​ance ri-ˈlī-ən(t)s 

1

: the act of relying : the state of being reliant

2

: something or someone relied on

Synonyms of reliance

• anchor
• backbone
• dependence
• pillar

Examples of reliance in a Sentence

he's been the family's foremost reliance in times of trouble many times

a baby's reliance on her parents

Recent Examples on the Web

OpenAI's custom chip could reduce its reliance on Nvidia over time for inference workloads, TrendForce Analyst Fion Chiu told CNBC. — Kai Nicol-Schwarz, CNBC, 26 Aug. 2026

Sinopec, the world’s largest oil refiner, posted a surge in profit for the first half of the year, reaching nearly $4 billion despite the company’s heavy reliance on crude from the Persian Gulf. — Tim McDonnell, semafor.com, 25 Aug. 2026

With this exploit, the original Quest hardware can now be officially divorced from any reliance on Meta’s servers or services to be useful. — Kyle Orland, ArsTechnica, 25 Aug. 2026

Advertising is an increasingly important revenue stream, reducing reliance on subscription pricing alone, while password-sharing crackdowns allow streamers to generate more value from existing audiences through extra member slots. — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 24 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1606, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing reliance

• self-reliance

Rhymes for reliance

• science
• appliance
• compliance
• defiance
• geoscience
• neuroscience
• noncompliance
• pseudoscience

Kids Definition

reliance

noun

re·​li·​ance ri-ˈlī-ən(t)s 

1

: the act of relying

2

: the condition or attitude of one who relies : dependence

3

: something or someone relied on

Legal Definition

reliance

noun

re·​li·​ance ri-ˈlī-əns 

1

: the act of relying

reliance on a promise

2

: reliance interest at interest 1