How to say "tolerance" in Japanese
Choosing the right word
- 寛容かんようnoun, na-adjective, suru verb, transitive verbTolerance as an attitude or character trait: being open-minded and accepting of other people's opinions, lifestyles, and differences. The word you want when praising a person, policy, or society as tolerant.
- 耐性たいせいnounCovers tolerance to a drug or pain and resistance to heat or corrosion — the word for these physical senses, not for attitudes toward people.
- 容赦ようしゃnoun, suru verb, transitive verbReally means pardon or mercy — overlooking what someone did rather than punishing it. Seldom the word you want for 'tolerance'; it is best known from negative expressions meaning 'without mercy'.
- 包容力ほうようりょくnounTolerance as a personal quality: the capacity to accept other people's differences, faults, and ideas with generosity. Typically used in describing a person's character.
- 大目おおめnoun, na-adjectiveTolerance as leniency in judging others — taking a magnanimous view of a fault. Best known from the expression 大目に見る, 'to overlook a fault'; on its own it is a marginal rendering of 'tolerance'.
Use 寛容 or 包容力 for tolerance as an open-minded attitude toward others, 耐性 for tolerance to drugs, pain, heat, and the like, 大目 for leniency toward faults, while 容赦 is really about mercy.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only
Japanese equivalents
- 寛容かんようtolerance
- 耐性たいせいresistance (to heat, corrosion, etc.)
- 容赦ようしゃpardon
- 包容力ほうようりょくtolerance
- 大目おおめmagnanimity
- 度量どりょうgenerosity
- 許容きょようpermission
- 包容ほうようtolerance
- トレランスtolerance
- 雅量がりょうmagnanimity
- 許容差きょようさallowable difference
- 堪忍かんにんpatience
- 量りょうgenerosity
- 公差こうさtolerance (in engineering, manufacturing, etc.)
- 了見りょうけんforgiveness
- 忍びしのびtolerance
See also
This browser can't play pronunciations (needs Safari 18.4 or later, or Chrome / Edge / Firefox).
