test someone's patience

verb

To begin to frustrate someone.

“These frequent Internet outages are testing my patience.”

Similar
try someone's patienceaggravateannoynettleranklerufflestingburn someone's ass
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Meanings

verbtest someone's patience (third-person singular simple present tests someone's patience, present participle testing someone's patience, simple past and past participle tested someone's patience)

present singular third person tests someone's patience · participle present testing someone's patience · participle past tested someone's patience · past tested someone's patience

  1. idiomaticinformaltransitiveTo begin to frustrate someone.

    These frequent Internet outages are testing my patience.

    Synonyms: try someone's patience, aggravate, annoy, nettle, rankle, ruffle, sting, burn someone's ass

Synonyms & antonyms

verbTo begin to frustrate someone.

Similar
try someone's patienceaggravateannoynettleranklerufflestingburn someone's assantagonizebotherdisgruntlebotheratebuggetgrateburn upbedevilacerbatecheese offdevil
Also see
annoytry someone's patience
Cite this entry
APA

test someone's patience. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/test%20someone's%20patience

MLA

“test someone's patience.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/test%20someone's%20patience. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “test someone's patience,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/test%20someone's%20patience.

Source: test someone's patience on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.