türelem
[ˈtyrɛlɛm]
The English word 'patience' is türelem in Hungarian.
Türelem is the most straightforward and commonly used translation for 'patience' in Hungarian. In a colloquial or exasperated context, one might say Türelem kell! to mean 'One needs patience!' or 'Be patient!'
Meaning: quality of being patient (noun)
Which one should you use?
Use the noun türelem to refer to the concept of patience, and the adjective türelmes to describe a person or an action.
How does it change in a sentence?
To say 'without patience', the noun türelem is used with the postposition nélkül to form türelem nélkül.
Did you know?
- The root tűr is cognate with other Uralic languages, showing that the idea of 'enduring' as a core part of 'patience' is an ancient feature of the language family.
- In Hungarian, the concept of 'running out of patience' is often expressed as elfogy a türelme. This treats patience like a physical resource, such as water or food, that can be completely consumed.
- When a Hungarian person tells you türelem kell, they are often not asking you to be patient, but are expressing their own frustration that a situation is taking too long.
Examples in context
- A türelem ritka erény manapság.Patience is a rare virtue these days.This sentence shows how to describe patience as a virtue.Tatoeba #1133491 by Barbulo, translation #281977 by CK
- Türelemre lesz szükséged, Tomi.You need patience, Tom.This sentence shows how to tell someone they need patience.Tatoeba #7176261 by maaster, translation #2645578 by CK
- A türelem rengeteg gyakorlást igényel.Developing patience requires a lot of practice.This sentence shows that developing patience requires practice.Tatoeba #4434424 by Martika, translation #8925352 by Adelpa
- Kérlek, legyél türelmesPlease be patient.
- 6 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Katalin is helping Gábor learn a difficult new skill.
- KatalinNe adja fel, Gábor, csak egy kis türelem!Don't give up, Gábor, just a little patience!
- GáborEz nagyon nehéz, már nincs türelmem.This is very hard, I have no more patience.
- KatalinA türelem segít a tanulásban.Patience helps in learning.
- GáborIgazad van, Katalin, próbálkozom tovább.You are right, Katalin, I will keep trying.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “patience” translations and entries türelem, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
