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Glite Dictionary
to rely on

to rely on

602 1.0
Trust a person or thing to do what you expect
  • phrasal verb
  • /rɪˈlaɪ ɑn/
translation icon : contar con
  • You can't rely on natural ability alone.
  • rely on family
  • rely on oneself
  • rely on authority

So we don't want to rely on anger as an ally.

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Examples

  • All these people rely on you for their livelihood.

  • If you are seeking medical treatment, you rely on these devices for your care.

    Academic text (2011)

  • Why is it that those students have to rely on schools just for food?

  • So you learn that you have to rely on certain people.

  • So, unfortunately, I now rely on you.

    F1 (2025)

  • I could always rely on you.

    Honor Society (2022)

  • With bands you have to rely on other people.

  • But I don't rely on money to keep my life going.

    The Minimalists

  • I'm relying on you, Bridget.

    Bridget Jones's Baby (2016)

  • I can always rely on my friends to support me during tough times.

Synonyms

to trust
vsto rely on
∞ 1.0

To believe someone will do what they say

is dependence for help or expected action rather than just belief
to count on
vsto rely on
700 1.8

To trust a person or thing to do what you need

is broader, covering general trust or support beyond a single expected action
to depend on
vsto rely on
309 1.0

Need help or support from something to live

is about trusting or expecting help rather than strict need for survival
to look to
vsto rely on
133 3.1

To rely on someone for help or advice

is broader dependence beyond actively asking for guidance or support
to rely upon
vsto rely on
33 2.3

Trust someone or something to do what you need

is more general and does not always state that level of confidence
to depend upon
vsto rely on
8 2.5

To trust a person or thing to give support

is general trust or expectation and may not stress confident belief

How Dependent

to count on
700 1.8
to rely on
602 1.0
to depend on
309 1.0

Surface Forms

rely on infinitive
relied on past
relied on past participle
relying on present participle
relies on third person singular

Morphology

rely + on

The verb 'rely' already encodes 'to depend or trust' and the preposition 'on' simply marks the target of that dependence; together they form a straightforward verb+preposition construction. This composition follows common cross-linguistic patterns for 'depend on', so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the meaning.

Etymology

Rely on comes from an old idea of being tied to or leaning on someone for help, where rely meant to tie and on shows the person you lean toward. So to rely on someone is like leaning on their support, which is why it means 'to depend on' or 'to trust'.