re·la·tion (r?-l??sh?n)n.1. A logical or natural association between two or more things; relevance of one to another; connection: the relation between smoking and heart disease.2. The connection of people by blood or marriage; kinship.3. A person connected to another by blood or marriage; a relative.4. The way in which one person or thing is connected with another: the relation of parent to child.5. relationsa. The mutual dealings or connections of persons, groups, or nations in social, business, or diplomatic matters: international relations.b. Sexual intercourse.6. a. The act of telling or narrating.b. A narrative; an account.7. Mathematics A correspondence between two sets, consisting of a set of ordered pairs, the first element of each of which is from the first set, and the second element of each of which is from the second set. If A = {1,2} and B = {3,4}, then {(1,3), (1,4)} is a relation from A to B.8. Law The principle by which an action done on a certain date is treated as having been done on an earlier date. Also called relation back.Idiom: in relation to In reference to; in connection with: This letter from the bank is in relation to your mortgage.American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.relation (r??le???n) n1. the state or condition of being related or the manner in which things are related2. connection by blood or marriage; kinship3. a person who is connected by blood or marriage; relative; kinsman4. reference or regard (esp in the phrase in or with relation to)5. the position, association, connection, or status of one person or thing with regard to another or others6. the act of relating or narrating7. an account or narrative8. (Law) law the principle by which an act done at one time is regarded in law as having been done antecedently9. (Law) law the statement of grounds of complaint made by a relator10. (Mathematics) logic maths a. an association between ordered pairs of objects, numbers, etc, such as ? is greater than ?b. the set of ordered pairs whose members have such an association11. (Philosophy) philosophy a. internal relation a relation that necessarily holds between its relata, as 4 is greater than 2b. external relation a relation that does not so hold[C14: from Latin rel?ti? a narration, a relation (between philosophical concepts)]Collins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014re?la?tion (r??le? ??n) n. 1. a significant association between or among things; connection: the relation between cause and effect. 2. relations, a. the various connections or dealings between peoples, countries, etc.: foreign relations. b. the various connections in which persons are brought together: business relations. c. sexual intercourse. 3. the mode or kind of connection between one person or thing and another. 4. connection between persons by blood or marriage; relationship. 5. a person who is related by blood or marriage; relative. 6. the act of relating or narrating. 7. Law. a principle whereby an act done at one time is presumed to have taken effect at a previous time. 8. Math. a. a property that associates two quantities in a definite order, as equality or inequality. b. a single- or multiple-valued function. Idioms: in or with relation to, with reference to; concerning. [1350?1400; Middle English relacion These words are used to refer to people or to connections between people.Your relations or relatives are the members of your family.The relations between people or groups are the contacts between them and the way they behave towards each other.You can talk in a similar way about the relationship between two people or groups.A relationship is also a close friendship between two people, especially one involving sexual or romantic feelings.