suffer


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suf·fer

 (sŭf′ər)
v. suf·fered, suf·fer·ing, suf·fers
v.intr.
1. To feel pain or distress; sustain injury or harm: suffer from arthritis; made the people suffer for their disloyalty.
2.
a. To have a specified shortcoming or weakness: writing that suffers from poor organization.
b. To sustain a loss, setback, or decline in effectiveness; become worse: When morale drops, the company's performance suffers.
c. To appear at a disadvantage: "He suffers by comparison with his greater contemporary" (Albert C. Baugh).
v.tr.
1.
a. To experience, undergo, or feel (something painful, injurious, or unpleasant): suffer a heart attack; suffer a debilitating illness; suffer pain.
b. To undergo or be subjected to (a negative experience or development): a team that suffered a defeat; a species that suffered a decline in population; a business that suffered huge losses.
2.
a. To put up with; tolerate: She does not suffer fools easily. See Synonyms at endure.
b. To permit; allow: "They were not suffered to aspire to so exalted a position as that of streetcar conductor" (Edmund S. Morgan).

[Middle English suffren, from Old French sufrir, from Vulgar Latin *sufferīre, from Latin sufferre : sub-, sub- + ferre, to carry; see bher- in Indo-European roots.]

suf′fer·er n.
suf′fer·ing·ly adv.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

suffer

(ˈsʌfə)
vb
1. to undergo or be subjected to (pain, punishment, etc)
2. (tr) to undergo or experience (anything): to suffer a change of management.
3. (intr) to be set at a disadvantage: this author suffers in translation.
4. to be prepared to endure (pain, death, etc): he suffers for the cause of freedom.
5. (tr) archaic to permit (someone to do something): suffer the little children to come unto me.
6. suffer from
a. to be ill with, esp recurrently
b. to be given to: he suffers from a tendency to exaggerate.
[C13: from Old French soffrir, from Latin sufferre, from sub- + ferre to bear]
ˈsufferer n
Usage: It is better to avoid using the words suffer and sufferer in relation to chronic illness or disability. They may be considered demeaning and disempowering. Suitable alternative are have, experience, be diagnosed with
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

suf•fer

(ˈsʌf ər)

v.i.
1. to undergo or feel pain or great distress.
2. to sustain injury, disadvantage, or loss.
3. to endure or be afflicted with something temporarily or chronically: to suffer with a cold; to suffer from parkinsonism.
4. to undergo a penalty, as of death.
v.t.
5. to undergo, be subjected to, or endure (pain, distress, injury, loss, or anything unpleasant).
6. to undergo or experience (any action, process, or condition): to suffer change.
7. to tolerate or allow: I do not suffer fools gladly.
[1200–50; < Latin sufferre=suf- suf- + ferre to bear1]
suf′fer•a•ble, adj.
suf′fer•a•bly, adv.
suf′fer•er, n.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

suffer

  • impatient - Meaning "not able to bear or suffer," based on Latin pati, "to suffer."
  • compatible - Its base is Latin compati, "suffer with."
  • harrow, harrowing - To harrow is to wound the feelings or cause to suffer—which gives us harrowing.
  • suffer - To suffer something is, etymologically, to "hold or sustain it from underneath," from Latin sufferre, "sustain."
Farlex Trivia Dictionary. © 2012 Farlex, Inc. All rights reserved.

suffer

put up withstandbear
1. 'suffer'

You can say that someone suffers pain or an unpleasant experience.

He suffered a lot of discomfort.
Young suffered imprisonment and intimidation.
2. 'put up with'

You do not use 'suffer' to say that someone tolerates an unpleasant person. You say that they put up with the person.

The local people have to put up with gaping tourists.
3. 'stand' and 'bear'

If you do not like someone at all, you do not say that you 'can't suffer' them. You say that you can't stand them or can't bear them.

She said she couldn't stand him.
I can't bear kids.
Collins COBUILD English Usage © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 2004, 2011, 2012

suffer


Past participle: suffered
Gerund: suffering

Imperative
suffer
suffer
Present
I suffer
you suffer
he/she/it suffers
we suffer
you suffer
they suffer
Preterite
I suffered
you suffered
he/she/it suffered
we suffered
you suffered
they suffered
Present Continuous
I am suffering
you are suffering
he/she/it is suffering
we are suffering
you are suffering
they are suffering
Present Perfect
I have suffered
you have suffered
he/she/it has suffered
we have suffered
you have suffered
they have suffered
Past Continuous
I was suffering
you were suffering
he/she/it was suffering
we were suffering
you were suffering
they were suffering
Past Perfect
I had suffered
you had suffered
he/she/it had suffered
we had suffered
you had suffered
they had suffered
Future
I will suffer
you will suffer
he/she/it will suffer
we will suffer
you will suffer
they will suffer
Future Perfect
I will have suffered
you will have suffered
he/she/it will have suffered
we will have suffered
you will have suffered
they will have suffered
Future Continuous
I will be suffering
you will be suffering
he/she/it will be suffering
we will be suffering
you will be suffering
they will be suffering
Present Perfect Continuous
I have been suffering
you have been suffering
he/she/it has been suffering
we have been suffering
you have been suffering
they have been suffering
Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been suffering
you will have been suffering
he/she/it will have been suffering
we will have been suffering
you will have been suffering
they will have been suffering
Past Perfect Continuous
I had been suffering
you had been suffering
he/she/it had been suffering
we had been suffering
you had been suffering
they had been suffering
Conditional
I would suffer
you would suffer
he/she/it would suffer
we would suffer
you would suffer
they would suffer
Past Conditional
I would have suffered
you would have suffered
he/she/it would have suffered
we would have suffered
you would have suffered
they would have suffered
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Verb1.suffer - undergo or be subjected to; "He suffered the penalty"; "Many saints suffered martyrdom"
tolerate - have a tolerance for a poison or strong drug or pathogen or environmental condition; "The patient does not tolerate the anti-inflammatory drugs we gave him"
die - suffer or face the pain of death; "Martyrs may die every day for their faith"
experience, go through, see - go or live through; "We had many trials to go through"; "he saw action in Viet Nam"
enjoy - have for one's benefit; "The industry enjoyed a boom"
2.suffer - undergo (as of injuries and illnesses); "She suffered a fracture in the accident"; "He had an insulin shock after eating three candy bars"; "She got a bruise on her leg"; "He got his arm broken in the scuffle"
collapse, break down - collapse due to fatigue, an illness, or a sudden attack
cramp - suffer from sudden painful contraction of a muscle
have - suffer from; be ill with; "She has arthritis"
crack up, crock up, collapse, break up, crack - suffer a nervous breakdown
experience, have, receive, get - go through (mental or physical states or experiences); "get an idea"; "experience vertigo"; "get nauseous"; "receive injuries"; "have a feeling"
3.suffer - experience (emotional) pain; "Every time her husband gets drunk, she suffers"
brook, endure, tolerate, stomach, abide, bear, digest, stick out, suffer, put up, stand, support - put up with something or somebody unpleasant; "I cannot bear his constant criticism"; "The new secretary had to endure a lot of unprofessional remarks"; "he learned to tolerate the heat"; "She stuck out two years in a miserable marriage"
feel, experience - undergo an emotional sensation or be in a particular state of mind; "She felt resentful"; "He felt regret"
agonise, agonize - suffer agony or anguish
anguish - suffer great pains or distress
lose - suffer the loss of a person through death or removal; "She lost her husband in the war"; "The couple that wanted to adopt the child lost her when the biological parents claimed her"
grieve, sorrow - feel grief
4.suffer - put up with something or somebody unpleasantsuffer - put up with something or somebody unpleasant; "I cannot bear his constant criticism"; "The new secretary had to endure a lot of unprofessional remarks"; "he learned to tolerate the heat"; "She stuck out two years in a miserable marriage"
live with, swallow, accept - tolerate or accommodate oneself to; "I shall have to accept these unpleasant working conditions"; "I swallowed the insult"; "She has learned to live with her husband's little idiosyncrasies"
hold still for, stand for - tolerate or bear; "I won't stand for this kind of behavior!"
bear up - endure cheerfully; "She bore up under the enormous strain"
take lying down - suffer without protest; suffer or endure passively; "I won't take this insult lying down"
take a joke - listen to a joke at one's own expense; "Can't you take a joke?"
sit out - endure to the end
pay - bear (a cost or penalty), in recompense for some action; "You'll pay for this!"; "She had to pay the penalty for speaking out rashly"; "You'll pay for this opinion later"
countenance, permit, allow, let - consent to, give permission; "She permitted her son to visit her estranged husband"; "I won't let the police search her basement"; "I cannot allow you to see your exam"
suffer - experience (emotional) pain; "Every time her husband gets drunk, she suffers"
5.suffer - get worse; "His grades suffered"
decline, worsen - grow worse; "Conditions in the slum worsened"
lose, suffer - be set at a disadvantage; "This author really suffers in translation"
6.suffer - feel pain or be in pain
have - suffer from; be ill with; "She has arthritis"
choke, gag, strangle, suffocate - struggle for breath; have insufficient oxygen intake; "he swallowed a fishbone and gagged"
ail - be ill or unwell
famish, starve, hunger - be hungry; go without food; "Let's eat--I'm starving!"
be - have the quality of being; (copula, used with an adjective or a predicate noun); "John is rich"; "This is not a good answer"
be well - be healthy; feel good; "She has not been well lately"
7.suffer - feel physical painsuffer - feel physical pain; "Were you hurting after the accident?"
perceive, comprehend - to become aware of through the senses; "I could perceive the ship coming over the horizon"
catch, get - suffer from the receipt of; "She will catch hell for this behavior!"
twinge - feel a sudden sharp, local pain
twinge, prick, sting - cause a stinging pain; "The needle pricked his skin"
kill - be the source of great pain for; "These new shoes are killing me!"
8.suffer - feel unwell or uncomfortable; "She is suffering from the hot weather"
freeze - be cold; "I could freeze to death in this office when the air conditioning is turned on"
swelter - be uncomfortably hot
be - have the quality of being; (copula, used with an adjective or a predicate noun); "John is rich"; "This is not a good answer"
9.suffer - be given to; "She suffers from a tendency to talk too much"
be given, incline, tend, lean, run - have a tendency or disposition to do or be something; be inclined; "She tends to be nervous before her lectures"; "These dresses run small"; "He inclined to corpulence"
10.suffer - undergo or suffer; "meet a violent death"; "suffer a terrible fate"
experience, go through, see - go or live through; "We had many trials to go through"; "he saw action in Viet Nam"
11.suffer - be set at a disadvantage; "This author really suffers in translation"
decline, worsen - grow worse; "Conditions in the slum worsened"
suffer - get worse; "His grades suffered"
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

suffer

verb
1. be in pain, hurt, ache, be racked, have a bad time, go through a lot (informal), go through the mill (informal), feel wretched Can you assure me that my father is not suffering?
2. be affected, have trouble with, be afflicted, be troubled with I realized he was suffering from shock.
3. undergo, experience, sustain, feel, bear, go through, endure The peace process has suffered a serious blow now.
4. deteriorate, decline, get worse, fall off, be impaired I'm not surprised that your studies are suffering.
5. tolerate, stand, put up with (informal), support, bear, endure, brook, hack (Brit. informal), abide She doesn't suffer fools gladly and, in her view, most people are fools.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

suffer

verb
1. To feel, show, or express grief:
2. To participate in or partake of personally:
Archaic: prove.
3. To put up with:
Informal: lump.
Idioms: take it, take it lying down.
4. To neither forbid nor prevent:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
يتألَّم، يُعانييَتَحَمَّل الخَسائِريُعانييُعانِييُهْمَل، يُعاني
trpěttrpět nautrpětzanedbat
lidelide aflide skade
suferi
kärsiäkestääkituaollapotea
patiti
szenvedelszenvedkárt vall
gjalda fyrir; verîa fyrir vanræksluòjástòjást afverîa fyrir, bíîa
被る我慢する掛かる罹患する苦しむ
괴로워하다
būti kamuojamamkentėjimaskentėtikęstinukentėti
būt atstātam novārtāciestslimot ar
suferi
trpieťutrpieťzanedbať
trpeti
lidalida av
ทนทุกข์ทรมาน
acı çekmekbaşına gelmekçekmekolumsuz etkilemekuğramak
chịu đựng

suffer

[ˈsʌfəʳ]
A. VT
1. (= experience) [+ pain, hardship] → sufrir, padecer; [+ loss, decline, setback] → sufrir, experimentar
to suffer a heart attacksufrir un infarto
the peace process has suffered a serious blowel proceso de paz ha sufrido or experimentado un serio contratiempo
to suffer the same fate assufrir la misma suerte que
to suffer the consequencessufrir las consecuencias
2. (= tolerate) [+ opposition, rudeness] → soportar, aguantar
I can't suffer it a moment longerno lo soporto or aguanto un minuto más
to suffer sb to do sth (Literat) → permitir que algn haga algo
he/she doesn't suffer fools gladlyno soporta a los imbéciles
B. VI
1. (= experience pain) → sufrir
to suffer for sthsufrir las consecuencias de algo
you'll suffer for this!¡me las pagarás!
I'll make him suffer for it!¡me las pagará!
to suffer for one's sinsexpiar sus pecados
to make sb sufferhacer sufrir a algn
to suffer in silencesufrir en silencio
2.
to suffer from sth (= experience) the house is suffering from neglectla casa está en un cierto estado de abandono
Madrid suffers from overcrowdingMadrid adolece de superpoblación
to suffer from an illnesspadecer una enfermedad
they were suffering from shockse encontraban en estado de shock
to suffer from the effects of alcoholsufrir los efectos del alcohol
to suffer from the effects of a fallresentirse de una caída
3. (= worsen) [studies, business, eyesight, health] → verse afectado, resentirse
sales have suffered badlylas ventas se han visto afectadas seriamente
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

suffer

[ˈsʌfər]
vt [+ pain, headaches, strain] → souffrir de; [+ heart attack] → faire; [+ shock] → subir; [+ setback, losses, defeat, hardship] → subir
to suffer the same fate → subir le même sort
vi
(= be badly affected) → souffrir
She was really suffering → Elle souffrait beaucoup.
to suffer from (disease, illness)souffrir de
I suffer from hay fever
BUT Je suis sujet au rhume des foins.
suffering from shock → en état de choc
They were taken to hospital suffering from shock → Ils ont été transportés à l'hôpital en état de choc.
to suffer from the effects of sth [+ heat, cold, poverty, sanctions] → souffrir des effets de qch
to suffer from the effects of alcohol → se ressentir des effets de l'alcool
to suffer from the effects of a fall → se ressentir des conséquences d'une chute
(= be adversely affected) → en souffrir
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

suffer

vt
(= undergo, be subjected to) pain, injuries, heart attack, loss, setback, damage, hardshiperleiden; hungerleiden; headache, stress, effects etcleiden unter or an (+dat); shockhaben; to suffer defeat/deatheine Niederlage/den Tod (geh)erleiden; the pound suffered further lossesdas Pfund musste weitere Einbußen hinnehmen; she suffered quite a blowsie hat einen Schicksalsschlag erlitten; her popularity suffered a declineihre Beliebtheit hat gelitten
(= tolerate)dulden, ertragen; he doesn’t suffer fools gladlyDummheit ist ihm ein Gräuel
(liter: = allow) → zulassen, dulden; to suffer something to be donezulassen or dulden, dass etw geschieht; suffer the little children to come unto me (Bibl) → lasset die Kindlein zu mir kommen (Bibl)
vi (physically, mentally, fig) → leiden (→ from unter +dat, → from illness an +dat); (as punishment, in hell etc) → büßen; he was suffering from shocker hatte einen Schock (erlitten); your health/work will sufferdeine Gesundheit/Arbeit wird darunter leiden; the runners are clearly suffering in this heatdie Hitze macht den Läufern sichtlich zu schaffen; the regiment suffered badlydas Regiment erlitt schwere Verluste; the town suffered badly in the raidsdie Stadt wurde bei den Luftangriffen schwer in Mitleidenschaft gezogen; how I suffered!was ich alles durchgemacht habe!; to suffer for one’s sinsfür seine Sünden büßen; you’ll suffer for this!das wirst du büßen!; we will see that you don’t suffer from the changeswir werden zusehen, dass Ihnen aus den Umstellungen keine Nachteile entstehen
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

suffer

[ˈsʌfəʳ]
1. vt
a. (hardship, hunger) → soffrire, patire; (pain) → provare; (undergo, loss, setback) → subire
to suffer pangs of hunger → provare i morsi della fame
b. (tolerate, opposition, rudeness) → sopportare, tollerare
she doesn't suffer fools gladly → non sopporta proprio gli stupidi
2. vi (physically) → soffrire; (be adversely affected, town) → subire danni; (regiment) → subire perdite
to suffer from (rheumatism, headaches, deafness) → soffrire di (malnutrition, the cold) → soffrire (a cold, influenza, bad memory) → avere
she suffers from a limp → zoppica
she was suffering from shock → era sotto shock
to suffer from the effects of alcohol/a fall → risentire degli effetti dell'alcol/di una caduta
the house is suffering from neglect → la casa è in stato di abbandono
your health will suffer → la tua salute ne risentirà
to suffer for one's sins → scontare i propri peccati
you'll suffer for it! → la pagherai!
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

suffer

(ˈsafə) verb
1. to undergo, endure or bear pain, misery etc. He suffered terrible pain from his injuries; The crash killed him instantly – he didn't suffer at all; I'll make you suffer for this insolence.
2. to undergo or experience. The army suffered enormous losses.
3. to be neglected. I like to see you enjoying yourself, but you mustn't let your work suffer.
4. (with from) to have or to have often (a particular illness etc). She suffers from stomach-aches.
ˈsuffering noun
(a feeling of) pain or misery. The shortage of food caused widespread suffering; She keeps complaining about her sufferings.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.

suffer

يُعانِي trpět lide leiden υποφέρω sufrir kärsiä souffrir patiti soffrire 被る 괴로워하다 lijden lide znieść sofrer страдать lida av ทนทุกข์ทรมาน acı çekmek chịu đựng 遭受
Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009

suffer

v. sufrir, padecer;
to ___ frompadecer de.
English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012
Collins Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009

suffer

vi sufrir; to — from padecer; She suffers from arthritis..Ella padece artritis.
English-Spanish/Spanish-English Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
References in classic literature ?
Thereupon we were bound in threes to stakes, to suffer execution.
He had shown signs of some obscure nervous disease before his arrest and this now developed into violent attacks of epilepsy, from which he suffered for the rest of his life.
"Adam, he WILL know--he WILL suffer, long and bitterly.
"No--not worse," said Adam, bitterly; "I don't believe it's worse-- I'd sooner do it--I'd sooner do a wickedness as I could suffer for by myself than ha' brought HER to do wickedness and then stand by and see 'em punish her while they let me alone; and all for a bit o' pleasure, as, if he'd had a man's heart in him, he'd ha' cut his hand off sooner than he'd ha' taken it.
I too am suffering, and shall suffer; I am losing what I prized above everything--I am losing my good name and my son.
They say that to do injustice is, by nature, good; to suffer injustice, evil; but that the evil is greater than the good.
If you could imagine any one obtaining this power of becoming invisible, and never doing any wrong or touching what was another's, he would be thought by the lookers-on to be a most wretched idiot, although they would praise him to one another's faces, and keep up appearances with one another from a fear that they too might suffer injustice.
Think of your mother; think of her misery while YOU suffer: for her sake you must exert yourself."
Happy, happy Elinor, YOU cannot have an idea of what I suffer."
From this time the prisoner resolved to suffer no longer, but to have everything he wanted.
When they found out my weakness they said I was not worth what they gave for me, and that I must go into one of the low cabs, and just be used up; that is what they are doing, whipping and working with never one thought of what I suffer -- they paid for me, and must get it out of me, they say.
But in spite of that she seemed to be disillusioned about everything and told everyone that she did not believe either in friendship or in love, or any of the joys of life, and expected peace only "yonder." She adopted the tone of one who has suffered a great disappointment, like a girl who has either lost the man she loved or been cruelly deceived by him.