What are the differences between the words 'relationship' and 'connection?'
This is what I found in a dictionary: "A connection is a relationship between two things, people, or groups." Then, are they just the same? Is there any difference between a relationship and a connection that is used to indicate something between two people?
Best Answer
A connection between X and Y usually means one party can alter the state of the other party somehow, or deliver things quickly (such as information or supplies).
A relationship between X and Y simply means X and Y share some attributes, or possibly other things if X and Y are people. X and Y might have a relationship but not a connection (e.g. John and Mark are Americans, but they live in other sides of the country and have never met, they are not connected).
The word connection is used if you can draw a line between two things. This scheme is often visually used to represent a relationship and hence sometimes connection is used synonymously with relationship.