Vocabulary listB1People and relationships

Relationships Vocabulary in English: Words, Examples and Quiz

Words and phrasal verbs for friends, partners and the people in your life: how relationships start, what keeps them strong, and what happens when they end.

46 words · By LearnLingo Team · Updated October 14, 2026

Tap to hear a word. Pronunciation is American English. Levels follow the CEFR scale. Turkish translations are given as a quick check.

People in your life

Words for the people you know, from someone you have met once to the person you share your life with. For mother, cousin and other relatives, see family members vocabulary.

Word	Meaning and example	Turkish
acquaintance ⁄əˈkweɪntəns⁄ · noun B2	a person you know a little, but who is not a close friend He's not really a friend, just an acquaintance from the gym.	tanıdık
close friend ⁄ˌkloʊs ˈfrend⁄ · noun B1	a friend you know very well and care about a lot Only my close friends know about the new job.	yakın arkadaş
best friend ⁄ˌbest ˈfrend⁄ · noun A2	the friend you like most and are closest to Ayşe has been my best friend since primary school.	en yakın arkadaş
partner ⁄ˈpɑːrtnɚ⁄ · noun B1	the person you live with or have a long romantic relationship with, married or not My partner and I moved in together last year.	partner, hayat arkadaşı
couple ⁄ˈkʌpəl⁄ · noun B1	two people who are married or in a romantic relationship They're a lovely couple and always laugh together.	çift
fiancé ⁄ˌfiːɑːnˈseɪ⁄ · noun B2	the man a person has promised to marry; fiancée is used for a woman, with the same sound Her fiancé is a doctor in Ankara.	nişanlı
ex ⁄eks⁄ · noun B2	an informal word for a former husband, wife, boyfriend or girlfriend I saw my ex at the supermarket yesterday.	eski sevgili, eski eş
roommate ⁄ˈruːmmeɪt⁄ · noun B1	a person you share a home or room with; flatmate or housemate in British English My roommate always leaves dirty dishes in the sink.	ev arkadaşı, oda arkadaşı
single ⁄ˈsɪŋɡəl⁄ · adjective B1	not married and not in a romantic relationship She's been single for two years and she's happy.	bekâr, ilişkisi olmayan

Meeting people and starting a relationship

Most of these are phrasal verbs or fixed phrases. Learn the preposition as part of the phrase: go out with someone, fall in love with someone, have a crush on someone.

Word	Meaning and example	Turkish
make friends ⁄ˌmeɪk ˈfrendz⁄ · phrase A2	to start a friendship with someone It's hard to make friends in a new city.	arkadaş edinmek
get to know ⁄ˌɡet tə ˈnoʊ⁄ · phrase B1	to slowly learn more about someone as you spend time with them We got to know each other on a long train journey.	tanımak, tanışıp kaynaşmak
hit it off ⁄ˌhɪt ɪt ˈɔːf⁄ · phrase B2	to like each other and become friendly very quickly We hit it off immediately and talked all night.	hemen anlaşmak, kaynaşmak
have a crush on ⁄ˌhæv ə ˈkrʌʃ ɑːn⁄ · phrase B2	to have strong romantic feelings for someone, often secretly I had a crush on my English teacher when I was fourteen.	birine gizlice âşık olmak, hoşlanmak
ask out ⁄ˌæsk ˈaʊt⁄ · phrasal verb B1	to invite someone to go on a romantic date He finally asked her out after six months.	çıkma teklif etmek
go out with ⁄ˌɡoʊ ˈaʊt wɪð⁄ · phrasal verb B1	to have a romantic relationship with someone How long have you been going out with Tom?	biriyle çıkmak
date ⁄deɪt⁄ · verb B1	to meet someone regularly because you have a romantic relationship They dated for three years before they got married.	çıkmak, flört etmek
first date ⁄ˌfɝːst ˈdeɪt⁄ · noun B1	the first time two people go out together romantically On our first date we went to a small Italian restaurant.	ilk buluşma
fall in love ⁄ˌfɔːl ɪn ˈlʌv⁄ · phrase B1	to start to love someone romantically They fell in love on holiday in Greece.	âşık olmak

Being together

Words for the good parts of a relationship and its big steps. Notice the pattern get plus an adjective for changes of state: get engaged, get married.

Word	Meaning and example	Turkish
get along ⁄ˌɡet əˈlɔːŋ⁄ · phrasal verb B1	to have a friendly relationship with someone; get on in British English I get along really well with my sister-in-law.	iyi geçinmek, anlaşmak
trust ⁄trʌst⁄ · verb B1	to believe that someone is honest and will not hurt you I trust her completely.	güvenmek
support ⁄səˈpɔːrt⁄ · verb B1	to help someone and be kind to them, especially in a hard time My friends really supported me when I lost my job.	desteklemek
respect ⁄rɪˈspekt⁄ · verb B1	to think someone's feelings and ideas are important We don't always agree, but we respect each other.	saygı duymak
keep in touch ⁄ˌkiːp ɪn ˈtʌtʃ⁄ · phrase B1	to keep talking or writing to someone, even when you live far away We keep in touch by video call every Sunday.	iletişimi sürdürmek
get engaged ⁄ˌɡet ɪnˈɡeɪdʒd⁄ · phrase B1	to agree formally to marry someone They got engaged on her birthday.	nişanlanmak
get married ⁄ˌɡet ˈmærid⁄ · phrase A2	to become husband and wife My brother is getting married in June.	evlenmek
wedding ⁄ˈwedɪŋ⁄ · noun A2	the ceremony and party when two people get married There were three hundred guests at the wedding.	düğün
anniversary ⁄ˌænɪˈvɝːsɚi⁄ · noun B1	the same date each year as an important event, such as a wedding It's our tenth wedding anniversary next week.	yıldönümü
make up ⁄ˌmeɪk ˈʌp⁄ · phrasal verb B1	to become friends again after an argument They had a big fight, but they made up the next day.	barışmak

Problems and endings

Words for when a relationship goes wrong. Break up and split up are for couples; fall out is for friends and family too.

Word	Meaning and example	Turkish
argue ⁄ˈɑːrɡjuː⁄ · verb B1	to speak angrily to someone because you disagree My parents sometimes argue about money.	tartışmak
argument ⁄ˈɑːrɡjəmənt⁄ · noun B1	an angry talk between people who disagree We had an argument about where to go on holiday.	tartışma, kavga
fall out ⁄ˌfɔːl ˈaʊt⁄ · phrasal verb B2	to argue with someone and stop being friendly with them She fell out with her best friend over a boy.	arası bozulmak, küsmek
jealous ⁄ˈdʒeləs⁄ · adjective B1	unhappy because someone you love seems to like another person, or because you want what someone else has He gets jealous when I talk to other men.	kıskanç
cheat on ⁄ˈtʃiːt ɑːn⁄ · phrasal verb B2	to have a secret romantic relationship with someone else She left him because he cheated on her.	aldatmak
break up ⁄ˌbreɪk ˈʌp⁄ · phrasal verb B1	to end a romantic relationship They broke up after five years together.	ayrılmak
split up ⁄ˌsplɪt ˈʌp⁄ · phrasal verb B2	to end a marriage or long relationship; similar to break up His parents split up when he was ten.	ayrılmak
divorce ⁄dɪˈvɔːrs⁄ · noun B1	the legal end of a marriage The divorce took more than a year.	boşanma
separated ⁄ˈsepɚeɪtɪd⁄ · adjective B2	married but no longer living together They're separated, but they aren't divorced yet.	ayrı yaşayan
lose touch ⁄ˌluːz ˈtʌtʃ⁄ · phrase B2	to stop talking or writing to someone over time We lost touch after university.	irtibatı kaybetmek

Describing relationships

Nouns for kinds of relationships and adjectives for good partners and friends. For more character words, see personality adjectives.

Word	Meaning and example	Turkish
relationship ⁄rɪˈleɪʃənʃɪp⁄ · noun B1	the way two people feel about and behave toward each other; also a romantic connection I have a good relationship with my boss.	ilişki
friendship ⁄ˈfrendʃɪp⁄ · noun B1	the relationship between friends Our friendship started on the first day of school.	arkadaşlık, dostluk
marriage ⁄ˈmærɪdʒ⁄ · noun B1	the relationship between two people who are married My grandparents had a long and happy marriage.	evlilik
romantic ⁄roʊˈmæntɪk⁄ · adjective B1	about love, or showing love in a sweet way He planned a romantic dinner for her birthday.	romantik
loyal ⁄ˈlɔɪəl⁄ · adjective B2	always supporting your friends or partner, even in hard times Dogs are famous for being loyal to their owners.	sadık
reliable ⁄rɪˈlaɪəbəl⁄ · adjective B1	someone you can trust to do what they say She's very reliable and never forgets a promise.	güvenilir
caring ⁄ˈkerɪŋ⁄ · adjective B1	kind and helpful, and thinking about other people's feelings He's a caring father who always has time for his kids.	şefkatli, ilgili
supportive ⁄səˈpɔːrtɪv⁄ · adjective B2	giving help and encouragement My partner was very supportive when I changed careers.	destekleyici

Useful phrases and collocations

be in a relationship
Are you in a relationship at the moment?
a long-distance relationship
A long-distance relationship is hard, but we call every day.
go on a date
We went on a date to the cinema.
fall in love with someone
He fell in love with her the moment he saw her.
be married to someone
She's been married to Can for ten years.
get divorced
They got divorced last year but they're still friends.
have an argument
We had an argument about the housework.
make up with someone
Have you made up with your sister yet?
break up with someone
She broke up with her boyfriend by text message.
be jealous of someone
He's jealous of his brother's success.
a close relationship
I have a close relationship with my grandmother.
move in together
We're moving in together next month.
propose to someone
He proposed to her on the beach at sunset.
have a lot in common
We hit it off because we have a lot in common.

How to learn these words

Learn relationship words as a story with a beginning, a middle and an end: meet, get to know, hit it off, ask out, go out with, fall in love, get engaged, get married, then argue, fall out, make up or break up. Tell the story out loud about a real or invented couple, and repeat it a few days later with new words. Short, spaced reviews work best; see how to learn English vocabulary.

Many of these are phrasal verbs, and the small word changes the meaning: make up (become friends again), break up (end a relationship), fall out (stop being friendly). Learn the preposition that follows too: go out with someone, break up with someone, be married to someone, be jealous of someone. More common phrasal verbs are in everyday phrasal verbs.

Marry and get married are different. Marry takes a direct object with no preposition: She married a doctor. Get married usually has no object, or uses to: They got married in May. She got married to a doctor. The same pattern works for divorce: They got divorced, or She divorced him.

British and American English differ a little. Americans say get along with and roommate; British speakers often say get on with and flatmate. Partner is a neutral word that works for any couple, married or not.

Use the words: speaking and writing tasks

Tell the story of a famous couple, real or from a film, in ten sentences, using at least five phrasal verbs from this page.
Describe your relationship with three people in your life (a friend, a relative, a colleague) using get along, trust, have a lot in common or keep in touch.
Write a short message to an old friend you lost touch with. Say what you have done since you last spoke and suggest meeting.
Explain the difference between break up, fall out and make up out loud, with one example sentence for each.
Practice meeting someone new and asking questions to get to know them. Use the phrases in making friends.

Common mistakes

She married with a teacher.

She married a teacher.

Marry takes a direct object with no preposition. If you want a preposition, use get married to: She got married to a teacher.

He is married with my cousin.

He is married to my cousin.

The preposition after married is to. Married with is used for children: He is married with two kids.

I'm jealous to my sister.

I'm jealous of my sister.

Jealous is followed by of, like envious of and afraid of.

I met with my girlfriend at a party three years ago.

I met my girlfriend at a party three years ago.

Meet with someone is mostly used for a planned work meeting, especially in American English. For the first time you see someone, use meet with no preposition.

We broke up last week, but yesterday we broke down and are together again.

We broke up last week, but yesterday we made up and are together again.

Make up means to become friends or a couple again. Break down is used for machines and for people who start crying or lose control.

Practice quiz

10 questions. Pick an answer to see if it is right and why.

1. They started going out in 2020 and ___ last year. Now they are husband and wife.
2. Choose the correct sentence.
3. What does make up mean in this sentence? We had a fight, but we made up an hour later.
4. I know him a little from work, but he isn't a friend. He's an ___.
5. He's ___ of his brother because their parents give him more attention.
6. Choose the most natural sentence.
7. We were best friends at school, but we ___ after we moved to different cities.
8. Which word is for a former boyfriend, girlfriend, husband or wife?
9. He was too nervous to ___ her ___ on a date.
10. She's very ___. You can always count on her to keep her promises.

0 of 10 answered

Show all answers

got married
She married a famous actor.
Became friends again
acquaintance
jealous
I get along very well with my neighbors.
lost touch
ex
ask, out
reliable

See what the B1 English course covers, or test your level first.

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