2 ADJ If you are patient , you stay calm and do not get annoyed, for example when something takes a long time, or when someone is not doing what you want them to do. □ Please be patient–your cheque will arrive. □ [+ with ] He was endlessly kind and patient with children. ● pa|tient|ly ADV [ADV with v] □ She waited patiently for Frances to finish. SYNONYMS patient ADJ 2
forbearing: He was always very forbearing.
understanding: Her boss, who was very understanding, gave her time off.
tolerant: They need to be tolerant of different points of view.
uncomplaining: He was a cheerful and uncomplaining travel companion.
pati|na /pæ t I nə/
1 N‑SING A patina is a thin layer of something that has formed on the surface of something. □ [+ of ] He allowed a fine patina of old coffee to develop around the inside of the mug.
2 N‑SING The patina on an old object is an attractive soft shine that has developed on its surface, usually because it has been used a lot. □ [+ of ] …a mahogany door that is golden brown with the patina of age.
3 N‑SING If you say that someone has a patina of a quality or characteristic, you mean that they have a small but impressive amount of this quality or characteristic. □ [+ of ] …a superficial patina of knowledge.
pa|tio /pæ tioʊ/ (patios ) N‑COUNT A patio is an area of flat blocks or concrete next to a house, where people can sit and relax or eat.
pa |tio doo r (patio doors ) N‑COUNT Patio doors are glass doors that lead onto a patio.
pa|tis|serie /pətiː səri, [AM ] -t I s-/ (patisseries )
1 N‑COUNT A patisserie is a shop where cakes and pastries are sold.
2 N‑UNCOUNT Patisserie is cakes and pastries. □ Blois is famous for patisserie.
pat|ois patois is both the singular and the plural form; the singular form is pronounced /pæ twɑː/, and the plural form is pronounced /pæ twɑːz/. 1 N‑VAR A patois is a form of a language, especially French, that is spoken in a particular area of a country. □ In France patois was spoken in rural, less developed regions.
2 N‑VAR A patois is a language that has developed from a mixture of other languages. □ A substantial proportion of the population speak a French-based patois.
pa|tri|arch /pe I triɑː r k/ (patriarchs )
1 N‑COUNT A patriarch is the male head of a family or tribe. □ [+ of ] The patriarch of the house, Mr Jawad, rules it with a ferocity renowned throughout the neighbourhood.
2 N‑COUNT ; N‑TITLE A patriarch is the head of one of a number of Eastern Christian Churches.
pa|tri|ar|chal /pe I triɑː r kəl/ ADJ [usu ADJ n] A patriarchal society, family, or system is one in which the men have all or most of the power and importance. □ To feminists she is a classic victim of the patriarchal society.
pa|tri|ar|chy /pe I triɑː r ki/ (patriarchies )
1 N‑UNCOUNT Patriarchy is a system in which men have all or most of the power and importance in a society or group. □ The main cause of women's and children's oppression is patriarchy.
2 N‑COUNT A patriarchy is a patriarchal society.
pa|tri|cian /pətr I ʃ ə n/ (patricians )
1 N‑COUNT A patrician is a person who comes from a family of high social rank. [FORMAL ] □ …the patrician banker Sir Charles Villiers.
2 ADJ If you describe someone as patrician , you mean that they behave in a sophisticated way, and look as though they are from a high social rank. □ He was a lean, patrician gent in his early sixties.
pat|ri|mo|ny /pæ tr I məni, [AM ] -moʊni/
1 N‑SING Someone's patrimony is the possessions that they have inherited from their father or ancestors. [FORMAL ] □ I left my parents' house, relinquished my estate and my patrimony.
2 N‑SING A country's patrimony is its land, buildings, and works of art. [FORMAL ] □ In the 1930s, The National Trust began its campaign to save Britain's patrimony of threatened country houses.
pa|tri|ot /pæ triət, pe I t-/ (patriots ) N‑COUNT Someone who is a patriot loves their country and feels very loyal towards it. □ They were staunch British patriots and had portraits of the Queen in their flat.
pat|ri|ot|ic /pæ triɒ t I k, pe I t-/ ADJ Someone who is patriotic loves their country and feels very loyal towards it. □ Woosnam was fiercely patriotic. □ The crowd sang 'Land of Hope and Glory' and other patriotic songs.
pat|ri|ot|ism /pæ triət I zəm, pe I t-/ N‑UNCOUNT Patriotism is love for your country and loyalty towards it. □ He was a country boy who had joined the army out of a sense of patriotism and adventure.
pa|trol /pətroʊ l/ (patrols , patrolling , patrolled )
1 VERB When soldiers, police, or guards patrol an area or building, they move around it in order to make sure that there is no trouble there. □ [V n] Prison officers continued to patrol the grounds within the jail. ● N‑COUNT Patrol is also a noun. □ He failed to return from a patrol.
2 PHRASE Soldiers, police, or guards who are on patrol are patrolling an area. □ …a sympathetic portrait of the daily pressures faced by soldiers on patrol.