patient

/ˈpeɪʃənt/

//ˈpeɪʃənt// adj

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"patient" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“patient” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #1,769 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.

#1,769
frequency rank, English
7
letters
10
tracked misspellings
9
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Willing to wait if necessary; not losing one's temper while waiting.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

patient vs potent
71% similar
patient vs patten
71% similar
patient vs patina
71% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for patient
PropertyValue
Headwordpatient
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈpeɪʃənt/
Letters7
Frequency rank#1,769
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs9
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “patient” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). patient lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for patient is 7 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈpeɪʃənt/. Corpus data places it at rank #1,769 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for patient, with forms such as "aptient", "paitent", and "pateint". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 9 confusable-pair relationships, "potent", "patten", "patina", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: 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”). The correct English form is patient, spelled P-A-T-I-E-N-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    Willing to wait if necessary; not losing one's temper while waiting.
  2. 2
    Constant in pursuit or exertion; persevering; calmly diligent.
  3. 3
    Physically able to suffer or bear.

Etymology

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”).

Synonyms

composed

Antonyms

impatientantsymacrophobic

This word in other languages

paciente(Español)patient(Français)geduldig(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: aptient,paitent,pateint,patiennt,patientt,patietn,patinet,pattient,ppatient,ptaient

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of patient - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

aptient2paitent2pateint2patiennt1patientt1patietn2patinet2pattient1
Edit distance from "patient"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "patient"?
"patient" is spelled P-A-T-I-E-N-T. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈpeɪʃənt/.
What does "patient" mean?
As an adjective, "patient" means: Willing to wait if necessary; not losing one's temper while waiting.
What words are commonly confused with "patient"?
"patient" is commonly confused with "potent", "patten", "patina". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "patient"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "patient" is /ˈpeɪʃənt/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "patient"?
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”). See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “patient”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is P-A-T-I-E-N-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈpeɪʃənt/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “potent” - see the side-by-side comparison. patient vs potent
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list