CategoryArchaic Word
Modern Equivalentallow; permit; endure.
KJV Word TypeVerb
DefinitionTo allow, permit, or endure. In the KJV, it often means "allow," as in Jesus’ words about children coming to Him.
Key Verses"Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me." (Matthew 19:14)
KJV Usage NoteFrequently means “allow” or “permit,” as in “Suffer little children,” rather than only “experience pain.”
Common MisunderstandingIt does not always mean to experience pain; in many KJV passages it means allow or permit.
EtymologyFrom Latin sufferre ("to bear, permit, endure").