patience of Job
- idiom
- /ˈpeɪʃəns əv dʒoʊb/
- Literature
- He is said to bring the wisdom of Solomon and, sometimes, the patience of Job in sorting through the unthinkable to compensate for loss.
Incredibly talented, a beast of a creative and clearly has the patience of Job and does it for the love of the art.
- Incredibly talented, a beast of a creative and clearly has the patience of Job and does it for the love of the art.
- He I should note he Co wrote it with Will Tracy who I haven't met but who I assume has the patience of Job.
Examples
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It takes the patience of Job to deal with him.
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They got the patience of Job.
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To handle the complaints of the angry customers, she showed the patience of Job.
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During the long wait at the airport, he displayed the patience of Job while keeping his children entertained.
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The teacher, known for her patience of Job, helped each student with their difficult questions without losing her calm.
Synonyms
To stay calm and not get annoyed when things take time
Ability to keep doing hard physical or mental work for a long time
Being very calm and kind with people even when things are difficult
A great ability to stay calm and not get angry in hard situations
Antonyms
How Patient
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase composition is literally 'patience' belonging to 'Job', so a learner who knows the words can infer it refers to someone's patience; however, the specific sense ‘extraordinary, long-suffering patience’ depends on knowing the biblical figure Job and his story. Because the meaning relies on cultural/biblical background (though the structure is transparent and many languages use the same allusion), it is only partially predictable to a B1 learner without prior exposure.
Etymology
Patience of Job comes from the Bible story of Job, a man who lost his family, health and money but kept his patience while he suffered. So, saying someone has the 'patience of Job' means they can stay patient through very hard times.