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Prepositions after adjectives

Patient with, in, for, on, or about?

Patient is most commonly followed by with when talking about people or situations that require tolerance.

Quick answer

Which preposition goes with patient?

Use patient with for people, behaviour, or situations: patient with children. Patient in can describe patience during a process. Patient for is uncommon and usually replaced by patient about or waiting for. Patient on is not a standard combination.

She is very patient with new employees.
He was patient in explaining the rules.
We must be patient about the delays.

Choose the pattern by meaning

These forms are not interchangeable. Choose the construction by meaning, not by which preposition appears most often.

1
patient with + person or thing

Showing tolerance or calmness

With is the standard preposition after patient.

Teachers need to be patient with young learners.
Thanks for being patient with me.
2
patient in + activity

Showing patience during an action

In refers to the activity or process where patience is shown.

She was patient in answering every question.
He remained patient in negotiations.
3
patient about + situation

Being calm regarding a delay or problem

About can describe the topic or situation connected to patience.

They were patient about the long wait.
Try to stay patient about the process.

See the difference in context

The same subject can take different constructions because each sentence answers a different question.

Construction
Example
Meaning
patient with
She is patient with her students.
Standard pattern for tolerance toward people or situations.
patient in
He was patient in training the new staff.
Focuses on the activity where patience is shown.
patient for
We waited patiently for the results.
For normally follows wait, not patient. Patient for is uncommon in modern English.
patient on
She was patient on the phone.
On refers to location or medium, not a fixed combination with patient.
patient about
They were patient about the delays.
Possible when referring to a situation or topic.

Common mistakes

Some combinations appear in real text but do not mean what learners often assume.

Using for after patient

Use with for people and situations, or use patiently for with verbs.

✕ She is patient for her children. ✓ She is patient with her children.

Using on as a fixed pattern

On usually introduces a separate detail such as location or communication method.

✓ He was patient with customers on the phone.

Mixing adjective and adverb forms

Patient is an adjective; patiently is an adverb.

✕ They patient waited for hours. ✓ They patiently waited for hours.

Quick practice

Choose the expression that matches the intended meaning.

1. Good managers are patient ___ new staff.
2. She was patient ___ explaining the software.
3. Try to stay patient ___ the delays.

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Frequently asked questions

Is patient with the most common pattern?

Yes. Patient with is the standard and most widely used combination.

Can I say patient in?

Yes. It is used when referring to the activity or process where someone shows patience.

Is patient for correct?

It is uncommon in modern English. Usually, speakers say patient with or use wait for instead.

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