Dictionary.com

tolerance

[ tol-er-uhns ]
/ ˈtɒl ər əns /
Save This Word!

noun
QUIZ
THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?
Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.
Question 1 of 7
In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

Origin of tolerance

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English tol(l)eraunce, from Old French tol(l)erance, from Medieval Latin tollerantia, from Latin tolerantia; see tolerant, -ance

synonym study for tolerance

1, 4. Tolerance , toleration agree in allowing the right of something that one does not approve. Tolerance suggests a liberal spirit toward the views and actions of others: tolerance toward religious minorities. Toleration implies the allowance or sufferance of conduct with which one is not in accord: toleration of graft.

OTHER WORDS FROM tolerance

non·tol·er·ance, nouno·ver·tol·er·ance, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use tolerance in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for tolerance

tolerance
/ (ˈtɒlərəns) /

noun
the state or quality of being tolerant
capacity to endure something, esp pain or hardship
the permitted variation in some measurement or other characteristic of an object or workpiece
physiol the capacity of an organism to endure the effects of a poison or other substance, esp after it has been taken over a prolonged period
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
FEEDBACK