Longsuffering
/ˌlɔːŋˈsʌfərɪŋ/noun
Patient endurance of hardship, annoyance, or provocation without complaint.
Did you know?In early Christian English, long-suffering was used as a virtue word for deliberate, godlike patience under insult — not passive weakness, but controlled endurance.
Etymological Timeline
Old English
OE
lang
“long in time or extent”
Old English
OE
suffrian
“to endure, undergo, permit”
Late Old English / Middle English
English
long-suffering
“patient endurance, especially of injury or provocation”
14th Century
English
longsuffraunce
“forbearance, patience under hardship”
Modern English
English
longsuffering
“patient endurance of hardship without complaint”