The defining feature is asymmetry of record-keeping. One party could not tell you the date it started; the other could tell you the hour. The Institute classifies the arrangement by the gap between those two accounts.

If you had to look this term up, you already know.

Representative usage

"It's not a situationship, we just talk every day, sleep over, and she met my mom" is a situationship with extra steps.

IAD Classification Index, Unfiled Relationships, 2026.

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