1
as in patience
the capacity to endure what is difficult or disagreeable without complaining
we thank you for your forbearance while we attend to the technical difficulties interrupting the TV program
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in mercy
kind, gentle, or compassionate treatment especially towards someone who is undeserving of it
the judge showed forbearance, and gave the teenaged first offender a suspended sentence
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of forbearance
What To Know While 8 million borrowers were enrolled in SAVE, they were put in involuntary forbearance for 15 months because of the ongoing litigation.
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Suzanne Blake, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 Dec. 2025
There is no one type of forbearance plan; the length and term are based on your circumstances.
—Lew Sichelman, Miami Herald, 4 Dec. 2025
Palomar decided to pursue the collaboration after facing significant financial difficulties that recently forced the organization to enter into a forbearance agreement with its lenders.
—Paul Sisson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 2 Dec. 2025
Private-sector financing could not match the forbearance or patience of Chinese state financing in sectors that required tremendous capital.
—Lael Brainard, Foreign Affairs, 10 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for forbearance
Recent Examples of Synonyms for forbearance
Noun
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These days, no one affords anyone patience.—
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Zeoli noted that when working confidentially with a business, there must be patience and discretion used.—
Noun
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The decisions and forces that affect society, that dictate the livelihoods and well-being of its citizens, are at the mercy of the market, and the now frighteningly transparent ways that the market serves and benefits its dutiful governmental benefactors.—
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Local districts bear too much of the financial and administrative burden, leaving students at the mercy of local budgets and priorities.—
Noun
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One of the biggest things is carrying the weight of the empathy, of feeling people’s issues or how people feel.—
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Featuring families across Ireland, Spain, and America, Tóibín is an author with incredible empathy for the human condition and these stories will be a perfect read for anyone who cares about the short story form.—
Cite this Entry
“Forbearance.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/forbearance. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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