pain threshold

1. The point at which one begins to feel physical pain in response to some stimulus. It doesn't take much for me to reach my pain threshold, so hit me with that numbing cream first, Doc. Please don't go right in with the novocaine shot! Hey, take it easy—ignoring your pain threshold during exercise is a great way to get injured.

2. informal The maximum level of physical pain that one can endure. (More properly referred to as pain tolerance.) I'm not surprised Cathy's refused to take the painkillers the dentist prescribed—she has an incredibly high pain threshold. A: "Do redheads really have a higher pain threshold than other people?" B: "Well, I've heard that they require less anesthesia than non-redheads."