forbearance

UK/fəˈbɛːɹ(ə)n(t)s/US/fəɹˈbɛɹən(t)s/

nounC2Rare in speech; mostly a word you read · #11,989 of 15,258neutralformal · an editor’s judgement

Forbearance is patient self-control when you could hit back. You had every right and you did not use it.

That restraint is the whole word, which is why it is a virtue rather than merely a behaviour. It is formal and slightly old-fashioned, and thanking somebody for their forbearance is a polite way of acknowledging that you have been trying. Finance has a precise sense, since mortgage forbearance means a lender agreeing not to enforce payment for a period. The verb forbear means to refrain.

Definitions of forbearance

1nounforbearancePatient restraint when you would be entitled to act.C2
“He thanked the neighbours for their forbearance during the work.”

Where it comes from

From forbear + -ance.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practised in A Man Called Ove

First appears in chapter 34 of A Man Called Ove.

Practise this word

forbearance in the wild

The FSLIC's financial weakness, along with congressional pressure, also forced regulators to engage in regulatory forbearance.
Savings and loan crisis
Kshama refers to forgiving others for the misdeeds they performed upon oneself, which is why it is related to qualities such as forbearance and compassion.
Kshama
Deferment or forbearance will prevent the loan from going into default, but may increase the overall cost of the loan.
Student loan deferment
The term is used for a person who is unwilling to act against an injustice, not out of cowardice but out of generosity or forbearance.
Mazlum

From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.

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