🇬🇧 Tolerate meaning: English Vocabulary Flash Card

To tolerate means to put up with something you don’t like, even though it bothers you. When you tolerate something, you don’t enjoy it, but you accept it or deal with it without giving up or exploding with anger. It can also mean being able to keep going even when things are uncomfortable, annoying, or difficult.

My nose can barely tolerate Dad’s socks; even the air tried to move out of the room.

The house plants have to tolerate my “watering schedule,” which is just me remembering they exist twice a month.

The goldfish has to tolerate us staring at it like it’s a tiny, wet celebrity.

I tolerate doing homework the way a turtle tolerates running a marathon: very slowly and with a lot of sighing.

I tolerate my baby cousin’s sticky hugs, even when I find mystery jam on my ear afterward.

Ana sat by the window and chose to tolerate the loud kettle, tolerate the neighbor's music, tolerate the crying baby next door, tolerate the dripping tap, and tolerate the cat kneading her lap. She closed her eyes, breathed, smiled at the mess, and finished her cold tea. A small knock brought hot soup, and she smiled.

This word is at the C2 level, which means it represents the highest mastery of English. It’s often used in specialized or highly formal contexts and helps you communicate with precision and subtlety, much like a native speaker.

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