Relevant To: Standard Pattern
Relevant To: Standard Pattern records the directly documented Cambridge construction and avoids turning a usage pattern into an unsupported universal prohibition.
Cambridge documents “relevant to” for something connected with the subject, situation, or purpose being considered.
Key details
Choose the right form
| Meaning / situation | Form / construction | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| connected with the subject or matter being considered | relevant to + noun | Use “to” to introduce the subject or situation. |
| pertinent to a purpose, decision, or question | relevant to + noun | The same pattern identifies what the information matters to. |
| choose another preposition merely by analogy | do not infer it | Keep the page bounded to the documented “relevant to” construction. |
Quick tests
Meaning / construction test
Does the adjective mean connected with or useful to the subject, situation, or purpose being considered?
If yes: Use “relevant to.”
If no: Use another construction only when the intended meaning is different.
Examples
This evidence is relevant to the question.
“To” introduces the question the evidence concerns.
Only include details relevant to the application.
The construction identifies what the details matter to.
The change is directly relevant to our decision.
“Relevant to” links the change with the decision under consideration.
Further guidance
Construction
Cambridge documents relevant to for something connected with the matter being discussed or considered.
Style Boundary
This page records the supported relevant-to construction without inventing a universal contrast against other wording.
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.
- relevant — Cambridge Dictionary (opens in a new tab)Cambridge University Press · Cambridge dictionary evidence for the adjective construction relevant to something.