sufferance

[ suhf-er-uhns, suhf-ruhns ]
See synonyms for sufferance on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. passive permission resulting from lack of interference; tolerance, especially of something wrong or illegal (usually preceded by on or by).

  2. capacity to endure pain, hardship, etc.; endurance.

  1. Archaic. suffering; misery.

  2. Archaic. patient endurance.

Origin of sufferance

1
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English sufferaunce, sufferanse, from Old French so(u)france, from Late Latin sufferentia, equivalent to suffer(re) to suffer + -entia-ence, -ance

Other words from sufferance

  • non·suf·fer·ance, noun

Words Nearby sufferance

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use sufferance in a sentence

  • He glanced with sufferance at the window, which offered a close-range view of a whitewashed wall.

    The Regent | E. Arnold Bennett
  • All these cottages and allotments have only been held on sufferance, on good behaviour, and hence they have failed.

    The Hills and the Vale | Richard Jefferies

British Dictionary definitions for sufferance

sufferance

/ (ˈsʌfərəns, ˈsʌfrəns) /


noun
  1. tolerance arising from failure to prohibit; tacit permission

  2. capacity to endure pain, injury, etc

  1. the state or condition of suffering

  2. archaic patient endurance

  3. on sufferance with reluctance

Origin of sufferance

1
C13: via Old French from Late Latin sufferentia endurance, from Latin sufferre to suffer

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012