endurance

Meanings

1. 1noununcountable

   The ability to keep doing something tiring or difficult for a long time without giving up.

   Grammar: No plural and no article: running requires endurance.

   Patterns

   • endurance for something
   • the endurance to do something

   Marathon runners train for months to build endurance.

   The climb tested her mental endurance.

   He has the endurance to work double shifts.

2. 2noununcountable

   The act of putting up with pain, hardship or an unpleasant situation.

   Grammar: Often appears in phrases like beyond endurance or test of endurance.

   Patterns

   • beyond endurance
   • a test of endurance

   The noise from the building site was almost beyond endurance.

   The long winter was a test of endurance for the family.

   Her quiet endurance of the illness impressed everyone.

3. 3noununcountabletechnical

   The capacity of an object or material to last and keep working over a long period.

   Grammar: Applied to things: the battery's endurance.

   Patterns

   • the endurance of something

   The test measured the endurance of the new tires.

   This phone has impressive battery endurance.

Common combinations

physical endurance

The race demands great physical endurance.

build endurance

Swimming is a good way to build endurance.

endurance test

The five-hour meeting was an endurance test.

beyond endurance

The heat became beyond endurance.

endurance athlete

As an endurance athlete, she cycles across continents.

test of endurance

The expedition was a test of endurance.

Synonyms and how they differ

stamina

Stamina is the physical or mental energy to keep going, while endurance also covers putting up with suffering.

fortitude

Fortitude is calm courage in the face of trouble, more about character than lasting effort.

tolerance

Tolerance means accepting something without reacting, whereas endurance means lasting through it.

staying power

Staying power is informal and often used about careers, products or teams.

Opposites

Word family

endure verb

to suffer something patiently, or to continue to exist

enduring adjective

lasting a long time

endurable adjective

possible to bear

unendurable adjective

too painful or unpleasant to bear

Commonly confused: endurance or durability?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “endurance”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

Explore more words