Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Capable of enduring or tolerating something; able to bear without complaint or adverse reaction. This describes a person's or thing's capacity to withstand a difficult, unpleasant, or persistent condition.

Usage

The adjective "patient of" is used to describe a subject that can tolerate a specific, often negative, circumstance or stimulus. It is a formal and somewhat literary construction. * The structure is: Subject + [be verb] + patient of + [object being endured]. * The object (what is being endured) is typically an abstract noun or a gerund (-ing form).

Examples

• She was remarkably patient of his constant interruptions during the meeting.
• A good teacher must be patient of the varied learning speeds in a classroom.
• The old bridge, though worn, proved patient of the heavy traffic for decades.
• He is not patient of fools.

Advanced Usage

• The phrase can be used in a more figurative or personified sense for non-human subjects.
  • The theory is patient of multiple interpretations. (It can tolerate or accommodate them.)
• It can describe tolerance for physical sensations.
  • After years of pain, he had become strangely patient of discomfort.

Variants and Related Words

• Patient (adjective): Able to accept or tolerate delays, problems, or suffering without becoming annoyed or anxious. (e.g., )
• Tolerant (adjective): Showing willingness to allow the existence of opinions or behavior that one does not necessarily agree with. (e.g., )
• Forbearing (adjective): Patient and self-controlled; restrained. (e.g., )

Synonyms

• Tolerant of
• Enduring of
• Long-suffering of
• Forbearing of
• Resistant to (in some physical contexts)

Related Phrases

• (To be) patient with: This is a more common and modern construction than "patient of." It is used when describing tolerance directed towards a person or a group.
  • You need to be patient with children. (Compare to: You need to be patient of children's mistakes.)

Adjective

1. showing the capacity for endurance
   • injustice can make us tolerant and forgiving
   • a man patient of distractions