Reliable: people, things and information you can trust
Describe dependable people and equipment, compare reliability, and choose reliable, reliably, reliability or rely on.
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Learn
Read the examples, then check each idea as you go.
Reliable describes someone or something you can depend on. A reliable person does what they have agreed to do; reliable equipment works as expected. Add a reason so your description is useful.
Trust someone to do the task
Calling a person reliable means you can depend on their actions. For a work or study task, explain what the person does consistently. Friendly and reliable describe different qualities; a friendly person may still forget an agreed task.
Aya is reliable: she sends the notes when she says she will.
We need a reliable person to open the shop each morning.
Equipment and services
Reliable can describe a machine or service that works as expected. The word does not mean new, expensive or fast. Choose it when you want to discuss whether something continues to do its job.
The printer is slow but reliable.
We need a reliable internet connection for the class.
A source you can trust
Reliable information is information you have good reason to trust. A reliable source is where dependable information comes from. Calling something reliable is a claim; explain your reason instead of using the word as proof.
Check the date on the timetable and use a reliable source.
The report gives reliable figures from checked records.
Place the adjective
Put reliable before the noun it describes, or after be, seem or become. The adjective does not change for a plural noun. Use very or quite if you want to describe the degree.
They are reliable workers.
The service seems reliable.
Compare how dependable things are
Use unreliable for the opposite. Use more reliable and less reliable to compare; use the most reliable when choosing from a group. Describe the evidence or situation when a broad comparison might be unclear.
This bus service is more reliable than the old one.
The signal becomes unreliable inside the tunnel.
Use reliably for an action
Reliably is the adverb. It describes how an action happens. Compare a reliable printer with a printer that works reliably: the first describes the thing; the second describes its action.
The new machine runs reliably throughout the day.
We cannot reliably predict the exact arrival time.
Name the quality
Reliability is the noun for how dependable someone or something is. It is usually uncountable. Use it when comparing a quality or discussing whether a service can be trusted.
Reliability matters more to me than speed.
The reliability of the bus service has improved.
Depend on someone with rely on
Rely on is a verb phrase meaning depend on or trust. Use rely on + person or thing. To name the expected action, use rely on someone to do something. Keep on; rely someone is incomplete in this meaning.
I rely on my calendar to remember appointments.
You can rely on Luis to lock the office.
Practice
Try the questions in order. Use a hint when you need one, then read the explanation after checking.
Use it in your own words
Describe a reliable person, tool or service in three sentences. Give a specific reason for your judgment. Use one other form from this lesson: reliably, reliability or rely on.
Write in English, then compare your writing with the checklist. This activity uses self-review, so it does not give a score.
Check your writing
Read an example response
My neighbor is reliable. When she agrees to collect a parcel, she always lets me know when it arrives. I can rely on her to keep it safe until I get home.
Test
Answer without hints. Your result shows which questions to review; you can change your answers and try again.
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