Friendly To: Standard Pattern
Friendly To: Standard Pattern records a directly documented English construction and keeps guidance bounded to the evidenced pattern rather than turning one attested complement into a universal prohibition.
Use “friendly to” for pleasant or kind behavior or attitude directed toward someone.
Key details
Choose the right form
| Meaning / situation | Form / construction | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| pleasant, kind, or welcoming behavior/attitude directed toward a person or group | friendly to + person/group | Use “friendly to” for behavior or attitude directed toward someone. |
| mutual or established personal relationship | friendly with + person | Use “friendly with” when the relationship itself is the focus. |
Quick tests
Meaning / construction test
Are you describing how someone behaves or feels toward another person or group?
If yes: Use “friendly to.”
If no: If you mean an established friendly relationship between people, “friendly with” may fit better.
Caveat: This page documents the “friendly to” pattern and contrasts it only where the evidence supports a relationship-focused “friendly with” use.
Examples
The staff were friendly to new visitors.
The phrase describes behavior directed toward visitors.
She has always been friendly to me.
The attitude or behavior is directed toward the speaker.
Be friendly to the new colleague.
The construction describes how to behave toward someone.
Further guidance
Construction
Use “friendly to” for pleasant or kind behavior or attitude directed toward someone.
Style Boundary
Cambridge distinguishes “friendly to/towards” for behavior or attitude from “friendly with” for a friendly relationship; keep those senses separate.
Sources and evidence
Sources are shown with the role they play in this guide. Historical or style-sensitive claims are kept within the evidence boundary described above.
- FRIENDLY | English meaning — Cambridge Dictionary (opens in a new tab)Cambridge University Press · Direct Cambridge dictionary evidence for friendly with in the relationship sense and for alternative friendly to/towards patterns.