patient

American  

[pey-shuhnt] / ˈpeɪ ʃənt /

noun

• patients
  plural

1. a person who is under medical care or treatment.

   Synonyms:

   invalid

2. a person or thing that undergoes some action.

3. Archaic. a sufferer or victim.

---

adjective

1. bearing provocation, annoyance, misfortune, delay, hardship, pain, etc., with fortitude and calm and without complaint, anger, or the like.

   Synonyms:

   calm, passive, resigned, long-suffering, uncomplaining

   Antonyms:

   hostile

2. characterized by or expressing such a quality.

   a patient smile.

   Synonyms:

   composed, self-possessed, unexcited, unruffled, serene, quiet

   Antonyms:

   agitated, impatient

3. quietly and steadily persevering or diligent, especially in detail or exactness.

   a patient worker.

   Synonyms:

   assiduous, sedulous

4. undergoing the action of another (opposed to agent).

idioms

1. patient of,

   1. having or showing the capacity for endurance.

      a man patient of distractions.

   2. susceptible of.

      This statement is patient of criticism.

patient British  

/ ˈpeɪʃənt /

adjective

1. enduring trying circumstances with even temper

2. tolerant; understanding

3. capable of accepting delay with equanimity

4. persevering or diligent

   a patient worker

5. archaic admitting of a certain interpretation

---

noun

1. a person who is receiving medical care

2. rare a person or thing that is the recipient of some action

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• patientness
  noun
• overpatient
  adjective
• patientless
  adjective
• quasi-patient
  adjective
• superpatient
  adjective
• unpatient
  adjective
• patiently
  adverb
• quasi-patiently
  adverb
• superpatiently
  adverb
• unpatiently
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• patients
  plural

Etymology

Origin of patient

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English adjective and noun pacient, from Middle French, from Latin patient-, stem of patiēns, present participle of patī “to undergo, suffer, bear”; see -ent

Explanation

You are patient if you don't get frustrated or annoyed when you have to wait or deal with difficulties. The band director may show patient leadership, but a football coach uses other methods with his team. It may be difficult to wait for something that takes a long time or deal with someone who is annoying, but if you are patient, you endure these things calmly and without frustration. Endure is the keyword here as patient comes from the Latin verb pati "to suffer, endure." Think of the patient way a chess player wins a game — calmly, steadily and willing to wait for the right time to act.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

patient patients

Some solutions that can reduce discomfort include allowing the patient to choose the music playing during a scan or procedure, and determining the pace at which a procedure takes place.

From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2026

They plan to examine additional patient groups in future analyses, including people with chronic kidney disease and peripheral artery disease.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 10, 2026

And, in his own way, he asked for investors to be patient, too.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 9, 2026

In that case, the perpetrator was determined to be a disgruntled patient, Derderian said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2026

If the men could be patient, the ice would carry them closer to their destination.

From "Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World" by Jennifer Armstrong

Shortly after, the company that brought one of the first sickle-cell cures, Lyfgenia, to patients, ran out of money and was sold.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026

Dr Simon Cork, from Anglia Ruskin University, said while the weight-loss benefits of Foundayo were less than other treatments, patients could still expect to see "significant, clinically meaningful changes to their weight".

From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026

Its patients in Africa hadn’t a spare dollar, so giving it away cost almost nothing and bought something no marketing budget could: nearly 40 years of goodwill.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026

However, the study was conducted in healthy adults rather than patients with diagnosed medical conditions.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 9, 2026

The fumes quickly put surgical patients to sleep, but this ether also had a tendency to stop their breathing completely.

From "Phineas Gage" by John Fleischman

Related Words

• calm
• forgiving
• gentle
• quiet
• tolerant