relative

rel·a·tive  (rl-tv)

adj.

1. Having pertinence or relevance; connected or related.

2. Considered in comparison with something else: the relative quiet of the suburbs.

3. Dependent on or interconnected with something else; not absolute. See Synonyms at dependent.

4. Grammar Referring to or qualifying an antecedent, as the pronoun who in the man who was on TV or that in the dictionary that I use.

5. Music Having the same key signature. Used of major and minor scales and keys: A minor is the relative minor of C major.

n.

1. One related by kinship, common origin, or marriage.

2. Something having a relation or connection to something else.

3. Grammar A relative pronoun.

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[Middle English, from Old French relatif, from Late Latin reltvus, from Latin reltus, past participle of referre, to relate; see relate.]

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rela·tive·ness n.

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relative [ˈrɛlətɪv]

adj

1. having meaning or significance only in relation to something else; not absolute a relative value

2. (prenominal) (of a scientific quantity) being measured or stated relative to some other substance or measurement relative humidity relative density Compare absolute [10]

3. (prenominal) comparative or respective the relative qualities of speed and accuracy

4. (postpositive; foll by to) in proportion (to); corresponding (to) earnings relative to production

5. having reference (to); pertinent (to) matters not relative to the topic under discussion

6. (Linguistics / Grammar) Grammar denoting or belonging to a class of words that function as subordinating conjunctions in introducing relative clauses. In English, relative pronouns and determiners include who, which, and that Compare demonstrative [5] interrogative [3]

7. (Linguistics / Grammar) Grammar denoting or relating to a clause (relative clause) that modifies a noun or pronoun occurring earlier in the sentence

8. (Music, other) (of a musical key or scale) having the same key signature as another key or scale C major is the relative major of A minor

n

1. a person who is related by blood or marriage; relation

2. (Linguistics / Grammar) a relative pronoun, clause, or grammatical construction

[from Late Latin relātīvus referring]

relatively  adv

relativeness  n

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rel•a•tive (ˈrɛl ə tɪv)

n.

1. a person who is connected with another by blood or marriage.

2. something having, or standing in, some relation to something else.

3. something dependent upon external conditions for its specific nature, size, etc. (opposed to absolute).

4. a relative pronoun, adjective, or adverb.

adj.

5. considered in relation to something else; comparative: the relative merits of gas and electric heating.

6. existing or having its specific nature only by relation to something else; not absolute or independent: Happiness is relative.

7. having relation or connection.

8. having reference; relevant; pertinent (usu. fol. by to): the facts relative to the case.

9. correspondent; proportionate.

10. depending for significance upon something else: “Better” is a relative term.

11. of or designating a word that introduces a subordinate clause and refers to an expressed or implied element of the principal clause: the relative pronoun who in “That was the woman who called”; the relative adverb where in “This is the house where I was born.”

12. (of a musical key) having the same key signature as another key: a relative minor.

[1350–1400; Middle English relatif (n.) (< Middle French) < Late Latin relātīvus (adj.); see relate, -ive]

rel′a•tive•ly, adv.

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	relative - a person related by blood or marriage; "police are searching for relatives of the deceased"; "he has distant relations back in New Jersey" relation individual, mortal, person, somebody, someone, soul - a human being; "there was too much for one person to do" kin group, kindred, kinship group, clan, kin, tribe - group of people related by blood or marriage ancestor, antecedent, ascendant, ascendent, root - someone from whom you are descended (but usually more remote than a grandparent) cousin, cousin-german, first cousin, full cousin - the child of your aunt or uncle descendant, descendent - a person considered as descended from some ancestor or race in-law, relative-in-law - a relative by marriage blood relation, blood relative, cognate, sib - one related by blood or origin; especially on sharing an ancestor with another kin, kinsperson, family - a person having kinship with another or others; "he's kin"; "he's family" enate, matrikin, matrilineal kin, matrilineal sib, matrisib - one related on the mother's side agnate, patrikin, patrilineal kin, patrilineal sib, patrisib - one related on the father's side kinsman - a male relative kinswoman - a female relative kissing cousin, kissing kin - a more or less distant relative; familiar enough to be greeted with a kiss next of kin - the person who is (or persons who are) most closely related to a given person offspring, progeny, issue - the immediate descendants of a person; "she was the mother of many offspring"; "he died without issue" second cousin - a child of a first cousin sib, sibling - a person's brother or sister better half, married person, partner, spouse, mate - a person's partner in marriage
	2.	relative - an animal or plant that bears a relationship to another (as related by common descent or by membership in the same genus) congenator, congeneric, congener organism, being - a living thing that has (or can develop) the ability to act or function independently
Adj.	1.	relative - estimated by comparison; not absolute or complete; "a relative stranger" comparative absolute - perfect or complete or pure; "absolute loyalty"; "absolute silence"; "absolute truth"; "absolute alcohol"
	2.	relative - properly related in size or degree or other measurable characteristics; usually followed by `to'; "the punishment ought to be proportional to the crime"; "earnings relative to production" proportional proportionate - being in due proportion; "proportionate representation of a minority group"

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relative

noun

relation, connection, kinsman or kinswoman, member of your or the family Do relatives of yours still live in Siberia?

adjective

1. comparative, considerable, reasonable, moderate, in comparison a period of relative calm

2. corresponding, comparable, respective, comparative, reciprocal, correlative the relative importance of education in 50 countries

3. (with to) in proportion to, corresponding to, proportionate to, proportional to The satellite remains in one spot relative to the earth's surface.

Quotations
"Every man sees in his relatives, and especially in his cousins, a series of grotesque caricatures of himself" [H.L. Mencken Prejudices]
"When you are courting a nice girl an hour seems like a second. When you sit on a red-hot cinder a second seems like an hour. That's relativity" [Albert Einstein]

Translations

relative [ˈrelətɪv]

A. ADJ

1. (= comparative) [safety, peace, comfort, ease] → relativo
her relative lack of experience → su relativa falta de experiencia
he is a relative newcomer → es relativamente nuevo
it's all relative → todo es relativo
in relative terms → relativamente
petrol consumption is relative to speed → el consumo de gasolina está en relación con la velocidad
there is a shortage of labour relative to demand → hay escasez de trabajadores en relación con la demanda

2. (= respective) the relative merits of the two systems → los méritos de cada uno de los dos sistemas

3. (= relevant) relative to → relativo a, concerniente a
the documents relative to the problem → la documentación relativa or concerniente al problema

4. (Ling) → relativo
relative clause → oración f subordinada relativa, oración f (subordinada)de relativo
relative pronoun → pronombre m relativo

5. (Mus) → relativo

B. N → pariente mf, familiar mf
friends and relatives → amigos mpl y familiares
a close/distant relative → un pariente cercano/lejano

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relative [ˈrɛlətɪv]

n → parent(e) m/f
all her relatives
BUT toute sa famille.
my close relatives → mes proches parents

adj

(= comparative) → relatif/ive
a period of relative calm → une période de calme relatif
relative to sth → relativement à qch
it's all relative → tout est relatif

(= respective) → respectif/ive
the relative merits of London and Paris → les mérites respectifs de Londres et Paris
relative clause n → (proposition f) relative f

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relative

adj

(= comparative, not absolute, Sci) → relativ; happiness is relative → Glück ist relativ; relative to him, she is in a very happy position → verglichen mit ihm ist sie gut dran; fuel consumption is relative to speed → der Benzinverbrauch hängt von der Geschwindigkeit ab; to live in relative luxury → verhältnismäßig or relativ luxuriös leben; with relative ease → relativ leicht; in relative terms → vergleichsweise, relativ gesehen; it’s all relative → es ist alles relativ

(= respective) → jeweilig; the relative merits of A and B → die jeweiligen Verdienste von A und B

(= relevant) relative to → sich beziehend auf (+acc)

(Gram) → Relativ-; relative pronoun/clause → Relativpronomen nt → /-satz m

(Mus) minor, major → parallel

n

(= person) = relation a

(Gram: = clause) → Relativsatz m; (= pronoun) → Relativpronomen nt

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relative [ˈrɛlətɪv]

1. adj (comparative) (Gram) → relativo/a; (connected) relative to → legato/a a
the relative merits of X and Y → i meriti rispettivi di X e Y

2. n → parente m/f

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relative → قريب příbuzný slægtning Verwandter συγγενής pariente sukulainen parent rođak parente 親戚 친척 familielid slektning krewny parente родственник släktning เครือญาติ göreceli họ hàng 亲戚

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relative

1. n.   pariente, familiar;

2.   gr. pronombre relativo;

a.  relativo-a.