patient
- 01 A2 Elementary
adj.able to stay calm and wait for a long time without getting angry.
adj.demonstrating the ability to endure waiting, delay, or frustration without becoming annoyed or upset.
Simple“You need to be patient with the new students while they learn the rules.”
In context“The negotiator remained remarkably patient throughout the twelve-hour session, refusing to let the other side's provocations break his composure.”
UsageOften followed by the preposition 'with' when referring to people.
- 02 A2 Elementary
n.a person who is receiving medical treatment from a doctor or hospital.
n.an individual receiving medical, dental, or psychiatric treatment or care.
Simple“The doctor spent twenty minutes talking to each patient in the waiting room.”
In context“The hospital implemented a new digital system to track patient records more efficiently across different departments.”
UsageCountable noun.
Synonymssick personcase - 03 C1 Advanced
n.the person or thing in a sentence that receives the action of a verb.
n.the semantic role of an entity that is acted upon or has its state changed by the action of a verb.
Simple“In the sentence 'The ball was kicked', the ball is the patient.”
In context“Linguistic analysis often distinguishes between the grammatical object and the semantic patient, especially when examining passive voice constructions.”
UsageUsed in the context of thematic relations and semantic roles.
Usage patient care · patient safety · patients can't
“Jean (not her real name), a nurse at a London hospital, reports: “We have some fans, but not enough for all the patients.”
“Bide your time, be patient and your moment will come.”
From Middle English pacient, from Middle French patient, from Old French pacient, from Latin patiens, present participle of patior (“to suffer, endure”), from Proto-Indo-European *peh₁- (“to hate, hurt”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.