Standard Lemma guide

tolerant

adj · noun · 8 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • UK: /ˈtɒləɹənt/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • US: /ˈtɑːləɹənt/
  • CMU ARPABET: T AA1 L ER0 AH0 N T Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • He's pretty tolerant of different political views, but don't ask him about religion.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: forbearing, lenient, open-minded, avuncular, broad-minded, catholic, indulgent, latitudinarian, laissez faire, liberal, open-handed, permissible, permissive, sufferable, tolerant

Antonyms: close-minded, intolerant, strict, antiliberal, biased, bigoted, closed-minded, illiberal, jaundiced, narrow-minded, prejudiced, sectarian

2

adj

Meaning 2

Tending to withstand or survive.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • These plants are tolerant of drought and sunlight.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: resistant, sufferable

Antonyms: intolerant, vulnerable

3

noun

Meaning 3

One who or that which tolerates something, especially a biological species.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

adjective

Meaning 4

showing respect for the rights or opinions or practices of others

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: intolerant

5

adjective satellite

Meaning 5

showing or characterized by broad-mindedness

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • a broad political stance
  • generous and broad sympathies
  • a liberal newspaper
  • tolerant of his opponent's opinions

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: broad, large-minded, liberal

Antonyms: none provided

6

adjective satellite

Meaning 6

tolerant and forgiving under provocation

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • our neighbor was very kind about the window our son broke

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: kind

Antonyms: none provided

7

adjective satellite

Meaning 7

showing the capacity for endurance

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • injustice can make us tolerant and forgiving
  • a man patient of distractions

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: patient of

Antonyms: none provided

8

adjective satellite

Meaning 8

able to tolerate environmental conditions or physiological stress

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • the plant is tolerant of saltwater
  • these fish are quite tolerant as long as extremes of pH are avoided
  • the new hybrid is more resistant to drought

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: resistant

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Either borrowed from French tolérant or directly from its source Latin tolerans, present participle of, and participial adjective from tolerō (“to endure”).

Across languages

Translations

39 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Armenian: հանդուրժող (handuržoġ) — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Belarusian: цярплі́вы (cjarplívy) — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Belarusian: талера́нтны (taljerántny) — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Catalan: tolerant — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Chinese Mandarin: 寬容 /宽容 (kuānróng) — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Czech: tolerantní — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Czech: snášenlivý — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Danish: tolerant — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Dutch: verdraagzaam — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Dutch: tolerant — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Esperanto: tolerema — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Finnish: suvaitsevainen — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Finnish: avarakatseinen — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • French: tolérant — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Galician: tolerante — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • German: tolerant — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Greek: ανεκτικός (anektikós) — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Hungarian: toleráns — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Irish: fulangach — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Latin: tolerans — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Māori: manawanui — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Māori: manawarahi — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Māori: ngāwari — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Norwegian Bokmål: tolerant — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: tolerant — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Persian: تاونده (tāvande) — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Polish: tolerancyjny — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Portuguese: tolerante — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Russian: терпи́мый (terpímyj) — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Russian: толера́нтный (tolerántnyj) — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Slovak: tolerantný — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Spanish: tolerante — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Swedish: tolerant — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Ukrainian: толера́нтний (tolerántnyj) — tending to permit, allow, understand, or accept something
  • Chinese Mandarin: 能耐 (néngnài) — tending to withstand or survive
  • Dutch: bestendig — tending to withstand or survive
  • Finnish: be tolerant of — tending to withstand or survive
  • Finnish: sietää — tending to withstand or survive
  • Irish: fulangach — tending to withstand or survive