Final answer:
The term that best reflects the early white settlers' relationship with Indigenous peoples in the Puget Sound region is 3) 'exploitation and displacement,' as historical records point to treaties that led to loss of Indigenous lands and culture.
Step-by-step explanation:
The term that best describes the relationship between early white settlers and indigenous people in the Puget Sound region is 3) exploitation and displacement.
This assessment is based on historical accounts which indicate that following initial contact, many native communities were subjected to pressures by white settlers and government policies that led to the loss of their lands and significant alterations to their way of life.
These interactions often involved treaties that were unfavorable to Indigenous peoples, leading to their economic dependency on trading posts and ultimately the ceding of their lands to settle debts or due to coercive measures by the settlers and state officials.
While there may have been instances of coexistence and trade, the overarching theme of the historical record shows that the native peoples' ways of life were largely disrupted and their territories reduced through various methods of exploitation and forced relocation.