reliance

[ ri-lahy-uhns ]

noun

1. confident or trustful dependence.

   Synonyms: assurance, faith, trust, confidence

2. confidence.
3. something or someone relied on.

reliance

/ rɪˈlaɪəns /

noun

1. dependence, confidence, or trust
2. something or someone upon which one relies

Derived Forms

• reˈliant, adjective
• reˈliantly, adverb

Other Words From

• misre·liance noun
• nonre·liance noun
• over·re·liance noun
• super·re·liance noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of reliance¹

First recorded in 1600–10; rely + -ance

Example Sentences

Mayor Karen Bass and other city officials have called it a key piece of their efforts to invest in local water supplies and reduce reliance on imported supplies that are growing less reliable with climate change.

From Los Angeles Times

The Conservative MP claimed the approach would "see our reliance on Chinese imports - a country which is 60% powered by coal - go through the roof".

From BBC

Trump’s reliance on gaslighting was flagged repeatedly in his 2016 campaign.

From Salon

Jameel Jaffer, the founding director of the Knight First Amendment Institute, for instance, disputed Cole’s claims, citing the Obama administration’s continued reliance on illegal and extralegal policies that Bush’s aggressive actions had already put in play — among them warrantless wiretapping, indefinite detention and the military commissions to try prisoners at Guantánamo.

From Salon

As Koh puts it: “In foreign affairs, even the longtime senator Joe Biden — who widely proclaims his love of the Senate — now operates almost entirely by executive fiat,” including a reliance on “classified policy memoranda, with minimal congressional oversight.”

From Salon

Related Words

• dependence