as in to depend
to place reliance or trust
rigorously tested the rope before starting out, for the rock climbers would be relying on it with their very lives
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of rely
If Leonard is unavailable or on a minutes restriction for any stretch of games, the Clippers will rely on guards Darius Garland and Bennedict Mathurin to lead the offense.
—
Janis Carr, Oc Register, 16 Mar. 2026
Spirit also relied on another 12,000 independent contractors and temporary workers.
—David Lyons, Sun Sentinel, 16 Mar. 2026
Or the answers could rely on some undisclosed input from human mathematicians.
—Joseph Howlett, Scientific American, 16 Mar. 2026
The jump in oil prices is ratcheting up costs for gasoline and airfares, and threatens to push up prices for an array of other goods that rely upon oil for transport, such as groceries and apparel.
—Max Zahn, ABC News, 16 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for rely
Janis Carr, Oc Register, 16 Mar. 2026
Spirit also relied on another 12,000 independent contractors and temporary workers.
—David Lyons, Sun Sentinel, 16 Mar. 2026
Or the answers could rely on some undisclosed input from human mathematicians.
—Joseph Howlett, Scientific American, 16 Mar. 2026
The jump in oil prices is ratcheting up costs for gasoline and airfares, and threatens to push up prices for an array of other goods that rely upon oil for transport, such as groceries and apparel.
—Max Zahn, ABC News, 16 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for rely
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rely
Verb
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Payments largely depend on a recipient’s retirement age.—
Asher Notheis,
The Washington Examiner,
19 Mar. 2026
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The free city bus stops right in front of the hotel every 20 minutes depending on the season.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
19 Mar. 2026
Verb
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From one game to the next, the players’ effort could be counted upon.—
Tom Krasovic,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
16 Mar. 2026
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Paxton trailed Cornyn in Collin County for most of the night, but ended up winning by about 900 votes when all the ballots were counted.—
Jack Fink,
CBS News,
15 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Rely.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rely. Accessed 22 Mar. 2026.
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