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

The tolerable upper limit for vitamin D in adults is 100 micrograms (4,000 IU). —Kirstyn Hill, Pharmd, Mph, Health, 8 Dec. 2024

While vitamin C toxicity is rare, there are established tolerable upper limits (ULs) that apply to food and supplemental forms of vitamin C. —Isabel Vasquez Rd Ldn, Health, 3 Dec. 2024

Whether your motivation behind adding an air purifier to your home is to help with smell, capture pet hair and dander, or make seasonal allergies more tolerable, now is the ideal time to purchase. —Rachel Trujillo, People.com, 30 Oct. 2024

Some torrential rain before kick-off made the temperature a little more tolerable, the away end was bouncing, but the feel and occasion were reflected in an attendance listed as 13,763. —George Caulkin, The Athletic, 2 Aug. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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