tolerable

[ tol-er-uh-buhl ]

/ ˈtɒl ər ə bəl /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR tolerable ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

capable of being tolerated; endurable: His arrogance is no longer tolerable.

fairly good; not bad.

Informal. in fair health.

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

tolbutamide test, told, tole, toledo, toledo, francisco de, tolerable, tolerance, tolerance dose, tolerance zone, tolerant, tolerantly

Origin of tolerable

1375–1425; late Middle English < Latin tolerābilis, equivalent to tolerā(re) to endure + -bilis -ble

SYNONYMS FOR tolerable

1 bearable, supportable.

2 passable, middling, indifferent, so-so.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR tolerable ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

tol·er·a·ble·ness, tol·er·a·bil·i·ty, nountol·er·a·bly, adverbnon·tol·er·a·ble, adjectivenon·tol·er·a·ble·ness, noun

non·tol·er·a·bly, adverbun·tol·er·a·ble, adjectiveun·tol·er·a·ble·ness, nounun·tol·er·a·bly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for tolerably

One of them is now in the possession of the Governor, and tolerably well reconciled to his new master.
A Narrative of the Expedition to Botany Bay|Watkin Tench
I hope, therefore, that this matter is tolerably well fixed, as far as the consumption of this country goes.
Memoir, Correspondence, And Miscellanies, From The Papers Of Thomas Jefferson|Thomas Jefferson
The males were tolerably good and were known by the smallness of their two fore-claws or feeders.
A Voyage to the South Sea|William Bligh
The Turkish men are generally robust, and tolerably well made, and it is rare to find a deformed person among them.
Buffon's Natural History. Volume IV (of 10)|Georges Louis Leclerc de Buffon

It is tolerably clear along here, and we might take our morning bath very comfortably.
Four Young Explorers|Oliver Optic

British Dictionary definitions for tolerably

tolerable

/ (ˈtɒlərəbəl) /

adjective

able to be tolerated; endurable

permissible

informal fairly good

Derived Formstolerableness or tolerability, nountolerably, adverb

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

Word Origin and History for tolerably

tolerable

adj.

early 15c., "bearable," from Middle French tolerable (14c.), from Latin tolerabilis "that may be endured," from tolerare "to tolerate" (see toleration). Meaning "moderate, middling, not bad" is recorded from 1540s. Related: Tolerably.