diff --git a/tools/style-check.sh b/tools/style-check.sh
index e43c20f9f..479f7bb91 100755
--- a/tools/style-check.sh
+++ b/tools/style-check.sh
@@ -60,6 +60,7 @@ for file in "$@"; do
         *.jpg) ;;
         *.png) ;;
         *.pnm) ;;
+        *.patch) ;;                 # patch output may have trailing lines or whitespace
         Makefile.in) ;;             # skip automake outputs
         */Makefile.in) ;;
         aclocal.m4) ;;              # skip autoconf outputs