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Did they come to you and immediately make you feel a relationship was being offered with the Russians that you’d like to develop? Or did you seek it from your end?

I found the phrase in this article: http://www.theartsdesk.com/classical-music/qa-special-pianist-barry-douglas

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  • He's asking who initiated the dialog/relationship/etc: the Russians, or you (ie did the dialog start on the Russians' end, or on your end)?
    – Dan Bron
    Commented Jun 22, 2015 at 12:27
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    You could replace "from your end" with "yourself", and it would have the same meaning.
    – Isabel Archer
    Commented Jun 29, 2020 at 22:08
  • The sentence would have the very same meaning as simply Or did you seek it? The your end part adds emphasis.
    – Yosef Baskin
    Commented Jun 30, 2020 at 14:07

4 Answers 4

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In this context, the word 'end' is referring to one (of two) members in the communication: you and the Russians. The question is asking whether the Russians sought a relationship with you, or if you sought a relationship with the Russians.

It might be helpful to try replacing the word 'end' with 'perspective':

Or did you seek it from your perspective?

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    Metaphorically, there are two "ends" in a bilateral relationship. Your end meets with their end in the middle, where the communication and other interaction takes place. When you are communicating, you offer words, tone of voice and body language at "your end", when they are communicating, they offer words, tone of voice and body language at "their end". Both ends of the relationship perceive these mutual offerings at their own end, but the challenge is to reconcile the differences in the middle ground.
    – ScotM
    Commented Jun 22, 2015 at 14:07
  • I like your first paragraph, and @ScotM adds a lot to this answer with his comment. I disagree with the rephrasing with "perspective" though. It sounds rather awkward as you don't usually do things from perspectives.
    – mfoy_
    Commented Jun 22, 2015 at 14:24
  • It might be helpful to try replacing the phrase 'from your end' with 'yourself / yourselves'. This is not a suitable question for ELU, Edwin (but hello).
    – Edwin Ashworth
    Commented Jun 22, 2015 at 14:27
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"From your end" means "on your part"

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    Supporting this answer would improve it. Please take the tour.
    – Davo
    Commented Jun 26, 2020 at 18:27
  • You could improve this answer by providing another example of "on your end" where the phrase can be replaced with "on your part".
    – Tsundoku
    Commented Jun 30, 2020 at 14:00
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In English when someone says "from your end" they mean, from your side of the communication, referring to you communicating with the Russians in your specific example.

Before cell phones, there were land line phones and older communications that were not wireless but required wires to connect two people in conversations. Each wire "end" was at one person's location.

So if you were to be on a land-line phone conversation with the Russians there would be two ends/sides to this connection, your end and their end of the communication.

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The other side of an activity or transaction that responds.

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I wrote so many letters to you, but got nothing in reply from your end.

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