Fifty-six friendship dyads and 24 acquaintance dyads participated in a study of variables that predict friendship context. Subjects completed measures of frequency of contact with their partner in the dyad, of willingness to discuss intimate topics, of ability to predict how the partner would respond to selected hypothetical situations, and of perceived similarity. Results from a stepwise multiple discriminant analysis indicated that willingness to discuss intimate topics, frequency of contact, perceived similarity of values, and predictive accuracy formed the best discriminator between friends and acquaintances. In the acquaintance group, 88% were correctly classified by the multiple discriminant analysis; in the friends group, 85% were correctly classified. Results are discussed in the context of an information-based theory of interpersonal communication. (AA)