thole

[ thohl ]

noun

a pin, or either of two pins, inserted into a gunwale to provide a fulcrum for an oar.

Origin of thole

before 900; Middle English tholle,Old English tholl; cognate with Low German dolle,Old Norse thollr; akin to Old Norse thǫll young fir-tree

Also called thole·pin [thohl-pin]. /ˈθoʊlˌpɪn/.

Words Nearby thole

Other definitions for thole (2 of 2)

thole²

[ thohl ]

verb (used with object),tholed, thol·ing.Chiefly Scot.

to suffer; bear; endure.

Origin of thole

First recorded before 900; Middle English tholen, Old English tholian; cognate with Old Norse thola, Gothic thulan; akin to Greek tlênai “to bear, endure,” Latin tolerāre (see tolerate)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use thole in a sentence

I canna thole him, wi' his lang-nebbit words, explainin' an' expoundin' the gude Book as if it had jist come oot!
Penelope's Experiences in Scotland | Kate Douglas Wiggin
So the boy was called Tweedie, and founded the great family of that name, whose legend was, “thole and think.”
The Rivers of Great Britain: Rivers of the East Coast | Various
I heard the creak of thole-pins as the rowers gave way, and the wash of oars as the boat shot off into the dark.
The Adventures of Harry Revel | Sir Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch
His motto is thole, and he gets too few opportunities of tholing.
The Half-Hearted | John Buchan
The folk round could thole them no longer, so they just up and burned the fort aboot their lugs.
The Last of the Legions and Other Tales of Long Ago | Arthur Conan Doyle

British Dictionary definitions for thole (1 of 2)

thole¹

tholepin (ˈθəʊlˌpɪn)

/ (θəʊl) /

noun

a wooden pin or one of a pair, set upright in the gunwales of a rowing boat to serve as a fulcrum in rowing

Origin of thole

Old English tholl, related to Middle Low German dolle, Norwegian toll, Icelandic thollr

British Dictionary definitions for thole (2 of 2)

thole²

/ (θəʊl) /

verb

(tr) Scot and Northern English dialect to put up with; bear
an archaic word for suffer

Origin of thole

Old English tholian; related to Old Saxon, Old High German tholōn, Old Norse thola to endure: compare Latin tollere to bear up

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

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