tolerable

adjective

tol·​er·​a·​ble ˈtä-lə-rə-bəl 

ˈtäl-rə-;

ˈtä-lər-bəl

1

: capable of being borne or endured

tolerable pain

2

: moderately good or agreeable : passable

a tolerable singing voice

tolerability

ˌtä-lə-rə-ˈbi-lə-tē 

ˌtäl-rə-

noun

tolerably

ˈtä-lə-rə-blē 

ˈtäl-rə-;

ˈtä-lər-blē

adverb

Synonyms

• bearable
• endurable
• sufferable
• supportable
• sustainable

Examples of tolerable in a Sentence

The heat was tolerable for only a short time.

stubbing your toe is at least a more tolerable pain than breaking your foot

Recent Examples on the Web

From the point of view of Paul, Weiss, having to strike this arrangement wasn’t pleasant, but the price was tolerable. —Ruth Marcus, New Yorker, 27 Mar. 2025

Analysts expect the pill to be as effective, safe and tolerable to take as Novo Nordisk’s semaglutide – the active ingredient in its popular but costly weight loss injection Wegovy and diabetes drug Ozempic. —Annika Kim Constantino, CNBC, 24 Mar. 2025

However, how much caffeine is tolerable can vary from person to person, and some people may be more sensitive to caffeine than others. —Emily Brown, Mph, Verywell Health, 19 Mar. 2025

Most fans understand the Raptors will lose most of the time, but in order to make the locker room tolerable, the odd win is important. —Eric Koreen, The Athletic, 14 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for tolerable

• intolerable

Kids Definition

tolerable

adjective

tol·​er·​able

ˈtäl-(ə-)rə-bəl,

ˈtäl-ər-bəl

1

: capable of being put up with

tolerable pain

2

: fairly good

a tolerable singing voice

tolerably

-blē

adverb