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patienter

to wait, to be patient

verb pah-syahn-TEH Rare

Origin: French patient + -er

Usage Note

Patienter is used when asking someone to hold on briefly — veuillez patienter is 'please hold' on a phone call or 'please wait a moment'. It implies calm waiting rather than mere waiting; attendre is the neutral verb for waiting. Often heard in service contexts.

Examples

"Pouvez-vous patienter quelques minutes ?"

Natural Translation

Could you wait a few minutes?

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