tolerate
verb
transitive verb
Synonyms
- allow
- let
- permit
- suffer
Example Sentences
Jamie Spain, Good Housekeeping, 19 Sep. 2022 Hannah Gadsby is right: punch lines need tension, which means that comics must often find ways not just to tolerate tension but to generate it. Kelefa Sanneh, The New Yorker, 19 Sep. 2022 In the late 80s, researchers explored the depths of Crater Lake with a one-man submarine, discovering worms, insects, and crustaceans that have evolved to tolerate the extreme pressure 2,000 feet below the surface. Ashley Stimpson, Popular Mechanics, 16 Sep. 2022 The macro story does explore the relationship of Gilead to the larger world, and uncomfortable questions about what its neighbors will tolerate in the pragmatic pursuit of political accommodation. Brian Lowry, CNN, 14 Sep. 2022 Randal is as motormouthed as ever, barely managing to tolerate younger protégé Elias (Trevor Fehrman). Andrew Barker, Variety, 8 Sep. 2022 The student is encouraged to tolerate these bottlenecks by embracing the school’s brand and overlooking its failings. Allen C. Guelzo And Scott L. Wyatt, WSJ, 7 Sep. 2022 Gardeners who don’t mind the challenge of growing zinnias during the summer have to either tolerate the leaf spotting or apply a fungicide. Tom Maccubbin, Orlando Sentinel, 3 Sep. 2022 This may allow humans and other mammals to tolerate meiotic drive over evolutionary time. Kathryn Kavanagh, The Conversation, 1 Sep. 2022 See More Word History
Latin toleratus, past participle of tolerare to endure, put up with; akin to Old English tholian to bear, Latin tollere to lift up, latus carried (suppletive past participle of ferre), Greek tlēnai to bear
1524, in the meaning defined at sense 2
Kids Definition
tolerate
verb
Medical Definition
tolerate
transitive verb
H. R. Litchfield & L. H. Dembotolerate
verb
Synonyms & Similar Words
- let
- allow
- ignore
- permit
- suffer
- condone
- forgive
- disregard
- excuse
- put up with
- overlook
- indulge
- shrug off
- pardon
- brook
- humor
- brush (aside or off)
- wink (at)
- cater (to)
- give in (to)
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- prevent
- prohibit
- block
- forbid
- bar
- discourage
- constrain
- deter
- inhibit
- impede
- interfere (with)
- curb
- frustrate
- hold back
Synonyms & Similar Words
- endure
- accept
- stand
- handle
- take
- sustain
- stomach
- absorb
- bear
- swallow
- abide
- wear
- meet
- countenance
- support
- suffer
- stand for
- brook
- sweat out
- stick out
- allow
- go
- hack
- live with
- bide
- permit
- pocket
- tough it out
- acquiesce
- lump (it)
- respect
- capitulate
- reconcile (to)
- consent (to)
- yield (to)
- agree (with or to)
- assent (to)
- submit (to)
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- refuse
- reject
- resist
- dismiss
- oppose
- avoid
- repudiate
- decline
- fight
- combat
- escape
- spurn
- evade
- miss
- circumvent
- turn down
- contest
- bypass
- elude
- refrain (from)
- dodge
- forbear
- abstain (from)
Synonym Chooser
Some common synonyms of tolerate are abide, bear, endure, stand, and suffer. While all these words mean "to put up with something trying or painful," tolerate suggests overcoming or successfully controlling an impulse to resist, avoid, or resent something injurious or distasteful.
While the synonyms abide and tolerate are close in meaning, abide suggests acceptance without resistance or protest.
The synonyms bear and tolerate are sometimes interchangeable, but bear usually implies the power to sustain without flinching or breaking.
The words endure and tolerate can be used in similar contexts, but endure implies continuing firm or resolute through trials and difficulties.
In some situations, the words stand and tolerate are roughly equivalent. However, stand emphasizes even more strongly the ability to bear without discomposure or flinching.
While in some cases nearly identical to tolerate, suffer often suggests acceptance or passivity rather than courage or patience in bearing.