What does relatable mean?

“Relatable” is one of those words everyone uses and few people define. Here are plain answers to the questions people ask most, and how the word connects to what this site does.

What does “relatable” mean?

Relatable describes something you can easily connect with because it matches your own experience or feelings. A story, a joke, a person or a situation is relatable when you think “that has happened to me” or “I know exactly how that feels”.

What does “that’s so relatable” mean?

It is a reaction, usually to something someone has said or posted, meaning “I feel the same” or “the same thing happens to me”. It is most often said about small, everyday frustrations and awkward moments, like putting off a phone call for a week or saying “you too” when the waiter says enjoy your meal.

What does “relatable” mean in English, and is it a real word?

Yes, it is a real English word. It is an adjective built from the verb “relate”: something relatable is able to be related to. It is now in general use, in everyday speech, in writing about films, books and marketing, and in teaching, where a relatable example is one students can connect to something they already know. Some formal writers still prefer “identifiable” or “easy to identify with”.

Which is correct: “relatable to” or “relatable with”?

“Relatable to” is the standard form, as in “a character relatable to teenagers”. “Relatable with” is much less common and is usually not what people mean. If you are describing the person doing the relating, the verb is “relate to”: “I can relate to that.” The spelling is “relatable”; “relateable” is a common misspelling.

What is the difference between relatable and relevant?

Relevant means something has a bearing on the matter at hand. Relatable is about feeling: it means you can connect with it personally. A tax rule can be highly relevant to you and not at all relatable. A sitcom character can be very relatable and have no relevance to your life at all.

What are some words that mean the same as relatable?

Close alternatives include familiar, identifiable, recognisable, down-to-earth, understandable and easy to identify with. In casual speech people say “I feel seen” or “same”. None is an exact match, because relatable carries the sense of personal connection.

Why is that useful for learning?

A new idea is easier to understand and remember when it connects to something you already know. That is the whole idea behind That’s Relatable. We explain a hard subject in terms of something you know well, such as inflation through a Freddo, black holes through a bath plughole or compound interest through a snowball, so the idea sticks. Each page is called a relatable, and each ends with a line on where the comparison breaks down.

Try making one

Pick any subject and anything you know well, and we will explain the first in terms of the second. Make your own relatable, browse the full library, or read how it works.