What does tolerableness mean?
Tolerableness means the quality of being tolerable: capable of being endured, accepted, or allowed. The word can describe a difficult experience that is bearable, an unwelcome condition that is nevertheless permissible, or a proposal whose demands are considered acceptable. Its use tends to be formal and somewhat uncommon, especially in contemporary English, where "tolerability" may be more natural when discussing medicines or treatments and "acceptability" may be preferred when judging proposals or conditions. Although tolerableness can resemble tolerance in meaning, it focuses primarily on the degree to which something can be borne or permitted rather than on a person's willingness to respect different views. The term is useful when the emphasis is on limits: something may be tolerable for a time without being genuinely comfortable or desirable.
nounThe quality of being tolerable, especially of being capable of being endured or accepted. It can also refer to the degree to which something is allowable.
- The quality of being capable of being endured or accepted without serious harm, objection, or inconvenience.
"The committee questioned the tolerableness of the demands placed upon the already overstretched staff."
"The clinic assessed the tolerableness of the new treatment among patients with varying sensitivities."
"Few regarded the proposal's constant demands as sufficiently tolerable to justify its wider benefits."
The plural is grammatically regular but exceptionally rare in practice.
"The study compared the tolerablenesses of several proposed treatments."
Tolerableness occupies a fine line: what can be endured is not necessarily what ought to be welcomed.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does tolerableness come from?
Tolerableness was formed in English from "tolerate" and the noun-forming suffix "-ness." Its vocabulary ultimately derives from Latin tolerare, meaning "to bear, endure, or allow," which is traditionally linked to tollere, "to bear" or "to carry." Related English words include "tolerable," "tolerance," and "toleration."
How tolerableness is actually used
Formal and relatively uncommon. In most contexts, the more familiar words "tolerability," "acceptability," or "tolerance" are preferred, depending on the intended sense.
Easily confused with tolerableness
Tolerableness is the quality of being endurable or acceptable, whereas tolerance more often denotes the willingness to respect differing opinions or practices.