toleranse

Toleranse, or tolerance, is the willingness to allow the existence of opinions, beliefs, practices, or people that one may not share or endorse. It encompasses a variety of domains, from social and ethical attitudes to biological and technical concepts, and is often shaped by rights, responsibilities, and safeguards against harm.

In social contexts, tolerance supports coexistence in diverse communities. It involves recognizing equal moral worth and the freedom to live according to one's values, while drawing lines against hatred, coercion, or violence. Philosophical discussions, notably Karl Popper's paradox of tolerance, argue that unlimited tolerance can enable intolerance to flourish, so societies may need to limit tolerance of intolerant behavior in order to preserve a tolerant culture.

In medicine and pharmacology, tolerance describes a diminished response to a drug after repeated use, which may require higher doses for the same effect. Tolerance can be pharmacokinetic, due to changes in drug metabolism, or pharmacodynamic, due to adaptation at the drug’s target. Cross-tolerance can occur between related substances.

In immunology, immune tolerance is the state in which the immune system does not attack certain antigens, helping prevent autoimmunity and enabling processes such as fetal tolerance and successful transplantation.

In measurement and manufacturing, tolerance is the allowable deviation from a defined dimension or standard, expressed as a range around a nominal value. In policy and law, tolerance is often a stated objective to protect minority rights and freedom while maintaining public order.