Strike up, build, develop, and maintain can all appear with relationship language. Their focus varies. Each often points to a different part of the connection.
Strike up a relationship marks its start, often in an informal story. It does not require chance, speed, or a first meeting. Build and develop focus on growth. Maintain focuses on keeping the connection active.
Related stages, with some overlap
A sentence may use different verbs for different times. Yet real relationships do not follow one fixed sequence. People can build trust and maintain contact. They may keep developing the same relationship at once.
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"We struck up a working relationship at the kickoff meeting, and we've been building on it ever since" — the first verb marks a start, while the second marks later effort.
"We have struck up the relationship for five years" is not natural for a continuing state. "We've maintained the relationship for five years, since it began at a trade show" gives the duration to maintained.
"She's spent the last two years developing the client relationship she struck up at that very first onsite visit" — the verbs distinguish the start from later growth.
Practice scenarios
Practice using strike up in situations like:
- describing how a client or peer relationship first began
- describing years of ongoing effort to build and maintain a relationship
- using both an origin verb and a development verb in the same sentence
Useful practice phrases:
- "We struck up a working relationship at... and we've been building on it since."
- "We've maintained the relationship for [time], since it began at..."
- "She's spent [time] developing the relationship she struck up at..."
Strike up usually focuses on the beginning. Build, develop, and maintain describe later effort or an ongoing state.
Choose the verb that matches the sentence's time and focus. More than one may fit the same relationship.
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