Word.ws English Dictionary

bear

UK/bɛə/

More pronunciations (1)Fewer pronunciations

British/bɛː/

bear noun: a large, generally omnivorous mammal (a few species are purely carnivorous or herbivorous) of the family Ursidae; having shaggy fur, a very small tail, and flat feet. Also the alternative spelling of bere.

Noun

bear (countable and uncountable, plural bears)

  1. A large, generally omnivorous mammal (a few species are purely carnivorous or herbivorous) of the family Ursidae; having shaggy fur, a very small tail, and flat feet.
    1. (uncountable) The meat of this animal.
      • We had barbecued bear for dinner.
  2. (figuratively) A rough, unmannerly, uncouth person.
    • One evening about this time, when his Lordship did me the honour to sup at my lodgings with Dr. Robertson and several other men of literary distinction, he regretted that Johnson had not been educated with more refinement, and lived more in polished society. 'No, no, my Lord, (said Signor Baretti,)...1791, James Boswell, Life of Johnson
    Synonyms:
    troublemaker
  3. An investor who sells commodities, securities, or futures in anticipation of a fall in prices.
    • This accompt has been made to appear a bull accompt, i.e. that the bulls cannot take their stock. The fact is the reverse; it is a bear accompt, but the bears, unable to deliver their stock, have conjointly banged the market, and pocketed the tickets, to defeat the rise and loss that would have...1821, Bank of England, The Bank - The Stock Exchange - The Bankers ..., page 64
    Antonyms:
    bull
  4. (US, slang, CB radio) A state policeman (short for Smokey Bear).
    • By the time we got into Tulsa Town
      We had eighty-five trucks in all
      But there's a roadblock up on the cloverleaf
      And them bears was wall-to-wall.
      Yeah, them smokies is thick as bugs on a bumper
      They even had a bear in the air.
      I says, "Callin' all trucks, this here's the Duck.
      We about to go...1975, “Convoy”, in C.W. McCall, Chip Davis (lyrics), Black Bear Road, performed by C. W. McCall
    • 'The bear's pulling somebody off there at 74,' reported someone else.1976 June, CB Magazine, Oklahoma City: Communications Publication Corporation, June 40/3
    Synonyms:
    police officer
  5. (slang) A large, hairy man, especially one who is homosexual.
    • Bears are usually hunky, chunky types reminiscent of railroad engineers and former football greats.[1979 July 26, George Mazzei, “Who's Who in the Zoo?: A Glossary of Gay Animals”, in Robert I. McQueen, editor, The Advocate, number 272, Liberation Publications, →ISSN, archived from the original on...
    • Bear sought by masculine white male, 30, 5'8", 165 lbs, for weekly safe encounter. I'm in a long-term relationship and seek outside fun. You: tall, masculine, over 200 lbs, discreet, moustache.1990 December 9, “Personal advertisement”, in Gay Community News, volume 18, number 21, page 12
    Antonyms:
    twink
  6. (Australia) A koala (bear).
    • Bunyip Bluegum was a tidy bear, he objected to whisker soup[.]1918, Norman Lindsay, The Magic Pudding, page 8
  7. A portable punching machine.
  8. A block covered with coarse matting, used to scour the deck.
  9. The fifteenth Lenormand card.
  10. (US, colloquial) Something difficult or tiresome; a burden or chore.
    • That window can be a bear to open.
    • "This was a real bear to refinish. You can't believe how hard it was right here to get a thousand years of crud out of this carving."2014, Joe Buda, Pilgrims' Passage: Into a New Millennium; Rebuilding the Past

Verb (1)

bear (third-person singular simple present bears, present participle bearing, simple past and past participle beared)

  1. (transitive) To endeavour to depress the price of, or prices in.
    • to bear a railroad stock
    • to bear the market

Adjective

bear (not comparable)

  1. (investments) Characterized by declining prices in securities markets or by belief that the prices will fall.
    • The great bear market starting in 1929 scared a whole generation of investors.

Verb (2)

bear (third-person singular simple present bears, present participle bearing, simple past bore or (archaic) bare, past participle borne or (colloquial) bore or (see usage notes) born)

  1. (transitive) To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.
    • They came bearing gifts.
    • Judging from the look on his face, he wasn't bearing good news.
    1. (transitive) To carry (weapons, flags or symbols of rank, office, etc.) upon one's person, especially visibly; to be equipped with (weapons, etc.).
      • the right to bear arms
      • Master Shake: […] so that I too may be able to bet on the sporting event where the guy did jailtime for bringing the gun into the club. / Carl: Hey ey ey, watch it. He got a constitutional right to bear arms...in a dance club.2012 July 29, Dave Willis, Matt Maiellaro, “Bookie” (06:14 from the start), in Aqua Teen Hunger Force, season 9, episode 6, spoken by Master Shake and Carl (Dana Snyder and Dave Willis)
    2. (transitive) To wear (garments, pieces of jewellery, etc.).
      • The queen bore the royal scepter and crown as she processed into the hall.
    3. (intransitive, rare, transitive) To carry (offspring in the womb), to be pregnant (with).
      • The scan showed that the ewe was bearing twins.
    4. (transitive) To have or display (a mark or other feature).
      • She still bears the scars from a cycling accident.
      • The stone bears a short inscription.
    5. (transitive) To display (a particular heraldic device) on a shield or coat of arms; to be entitled to wear or use (a heraldic device) as a coat of arms.
      • The shield bore a red cross.
    6. (transitive) To present or exhibit (a particular outward appearance); to have (a certain look).
      • He bore the look of a defeated man.
      • The body was unclothed, and bore the appearance of being washed up by the sea.1930, Essex Chronicle, 18 April 9/5
    7. (transitive) To have (a name, title, or designation).
      • The school still bears the name of its founder.
      • […] imitations that bear the same name as the things […]2005, Plato, translated by Lesley Brown, Sophist, page 234b
    8. (transitive) To possess or enjoy (recognition, renown, a reputation, etc.); to have (a particular price, value, or worth).
      • The dictator bears a terrible reputation for cruelty.
    9. (transitive, usually, loan) To have (interest or a specified rate of interest) stipulated in its terms.
      • The bond bears a fixed interest rate of 3.5%.
    10. (transitive) To have (an appendage, organ, etc.) as part of the body; (of a part of the body) to have (an appendage).
      • Only the male Indian elephant bears tusks.
    11. (transitive) To carry or hold in the mind; to experience, entertain, harbour (an idea, feeling, or emotion).
      • to bear a grudge, to bear ill will
      • the ancient grudge I bear himc. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward]...
    12. (rare, transitive) To feel and show (respect, reverence, loyalty, etc.) to, towards, or unto a person or thing.
      • The brothers had always borne one another respect.
    13. (transitive) To possess inherently (a quality, attribute, power, or capacity); to have and display as an essential characteristic.
      • to bear life
    14. (transitive) To have (a relation, correspondence, etc.) to something else.
      • The punishment bears no relation to the crime.
    15. (transitive) To give (written or oral testimony or evidence); (figurative) to provide or constitute (evidence or proof), give witness.
      • His achievements bear testimony to his ability.
      • The jury could see he was bearing false witness.
    16. (transitive) To have (a certain meaning, intent, or effect).
      • This word no longer bears its original meaning.
      • Her sentence bore that she should stand a certain time upon the platform.1850, Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter, a Romance, Boston, Mass.: Ticknor, Reed, and Fields, →OCLC
    17. (reflexive, transitive) To behave or conduct (oneself).
      • She bore herself well throughout the ordeal.
      • Thus must thou thy body bear.c. 1595–1596 (date written), William Shakespeare, “Loues Labour’s Lost”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward]...
    18. (rare, transitive) To possess and use, to exercise (power or influence); to hold (an office, rank, or position).
      • Every man should bear rule in his own house.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Esther 1:22
    19. (intransitive, obsolete, transitive) To carry a burden or burdens.
    20. (obsolete, rare, transitive) To take or bring (a person) with oneself; to conduct.
      • Bear them to my house.c. 1594 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Comedie of Errors”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount...
  2. (transitive) To support or sustain; to hold up.
    • This stone bears most of the weight.
  3. (now transitive outside certain set patterns such as 'bear with', formerly also intransitive) To endure or withstand (hardship, scrutiny, etc.); to tolerate; to be patient (with).
    • The pain is too much for me to bear.
    • It doesn’t bear thinking about.
  4. (transitive) To sustain, or be answerable for (blame, expense, responsibility, etc.).
    • The hirer must bear the cost of any repairs.
    • He shall bear their iniquities.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Isaiah 53:11
    Synonyms:
    meet
  5. (transitive) To admit or be capable of (a meaning); to suffer or sustain without violence, injury, or change.
    • In all criminal cases the most favourable interpretation should be put on words that they can possibly bear.1724, Drapier's Letters, Jonathan Swift
  6. (transitive) To warrant, justify the need for.
    • This storm definitely bears monitoring.
    • An unusually high percentage of the hundreds of gay men who participated in the experimental trials for this vaccine (1978-1980) developed AIDS. Since these trials occurred at about the same time as the first AIDS cases in the same cities […] a possible connection at least bears careful study.1989 August 19, Bob Lederer, “Hiding Behind HIV”, in Gay Community News, volume 17, number 6, page 10
  7. (transitive) To afford, to be something to someone, to supply with something.
    • […] admitted to that equal sky, / His faithful dog shall bear him company.1732–4, Alexander Pope, An Essay on Man, Longmans, Green & Co, 1879, p. 10
  8. (transitive) To carry on, or maintain; to have.
    • […] and he finds the Pleasure, and Credit of bearing a Part in the Conversation, and of having his Reasons sometimes approved and hearken'd to.1693, John Locke, Some Thoughts Concerning Education, § 98
  9. (intransitive, usually, with-on, upon, or against) To push, thrust, press.
    • The rope has frayed where it bears on the rim of the wheel.
    • These men therefore bear hard upon the suspected party.1711 September 24 (Gregorian calendar), [Joseph Addison; Richard Steele et al.], “THURSDAY, September 14, 1711”, in The Spectator, number 170; republished in Alexander Chalmers, editor, The...
  10. (figuratively, intransitive) To take effect; to have influence or force; to be relevant.
    • to bring arguments to bear
    • How does this bear on the question?
  11. (intransitive, usually with on or upon) Of a weapon, to be aimed at an enemy or other target.
    • The cannons were wheeled around to bear upon the advancing troops.
    • Constitution's gun crews crossed the deck to the already loaded larboard guns as Bainbridge wore the ship around on a larboard tack and recrossed his path in a rare double raking action to bring her guns to bear again on Java's damaged stern.2012, Ronald D. Utt, Ships of Oak, Guns of Iron
  12. (ditransitive, transitive) To give birth to (someone or something) (may take the father of the direct object as an indirect object).
    • In Troy she becomes Paris’ wife, bearing him several children, all of whom die in infancy.
    • The twins were borne by an Italian mother.
Show 3 more meaningsShow fewer meanings
  1. (intransitive, transitive, uncommon) To produce or yield something, such as fruit or crops.
    • This year our apple trees bore a good crop of fruit.
    • Betwixt two seasons comes th' auspicious air, / This age to blossom, and the next to bear.1688, John Dryden, Britannia Rediviva
  2. (intransitive) To be, or head, in a specific direction or azimuth (from somewhere).
    • Carry on past the church and then bear left at the junction.
    • By my readings, we're bearing due south, so we should turn about ten degrees east.
  3. (obsolete, transitive) To gain or win.
    • Some think to bear it by speaking a great word.1625, Francis [Bacon], “Of Seeming Wise”, in The Essayes […], 3rd edition, London: […] Iohn Haviland for Hanna Barret, →OCLC
    • She was […] found not guilty, through bearing of friends and bribing of the judge.April 5, 1549, Hugh Latimer, The Fifth Sermon Preached Before King Edward (probably not in original spelling)

Proper noun capitalized: Bear

Bear

  1. A surname.
  2. (usually preceded by definite article) The constellation Ursa Major.
    • But he must ever watch the northern Bear,
      Who from her frozen height with jealous eye
      Confronts the Dog and the Hunter in the south,
      And is alone not dipt in Ocean's stream.1869, Matthew Arnold, Early Poems, Narrative Poems and Sonnets, London: Macmillan and Co., published 1885, page 150
  3. A male given name.
    • Liam Payne, a former member of the boyband One Direction, has died after falling from the third floor of a hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina, according to local police. Payne, who was 31, leaves behind his seven-year-old son, Bear.2024 October 16, Dan Heching, Manuela Castro, Mauricio Torres, Alli Rosenbloom and Christian Edwards, “Liam Payne, former One Direction member, dies after hotel balcony fall”, in CNN
  4. An unincorporated community in Garland County, Arkansas.
  5. A census-designated place in New Castle County, Delaware.
  6. An unincorporated community in Adams County, Idaho.

Also used as

bear is also the alternative spelling of bere.

bear meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu

bear in Hindi

large mammal of family Ursidae
भालो bhālo, भालू bhālū, रीछ rīch
to carry
ले जाना le jānā
to endure with patience; to be patient
सहना sahnā
to tolerate, to put up with
सहना sahnā

bear in Tamil

large mammal of family Ursidae
கரடி karaṭi
large hairy man
கரடி karaṭi

bear in Marathi

large mammal of family Ursidae
अस्वल asval

bear in Urdu

large mammal of family Ursidae
رِیچھ rīch, بھالُو bhālū, بھالُوک bhālūk
to carry
لے جانا le jānā
More languagesFewer languages
bear in Bengali
ভালুক bhaluk, সহ্য করা śojjho kora, সওয়া śoōẇa
bear in Telugu
ఎలుగుబంటి elugubaṇṭi, ఎలుగ్గొడ్డు eluggoḍḍu, ఎలుగు elugu, మోయుట mōyuṭa
bear in Malayalam
കരടി karaṭi
bear in Kannada
ಕರಡಿ karaḍi
bear in Punjabi
ਰਿਛ rich
bear in Gujarati
રીંછ rī̃ch
bear in Odia
ଭାଲୁ bhālu
bear in Sanskrit
ऋक्ष ṛkṣa, भल्लूक bhallūka, भरति bharati, धरति dharati
bear in Sinhala
වලසා walasā
bear in Assamese
ভালুক bhaluk
bear in Nepali
भालु bhālu
bear in Pashto
خرس xers, بالو bālǔ, وړل wṛəl
bear in Tagalog
oso
bear in Arabic
دُبّ dubb, دُبَّة dubba, حَمَلَ ḥamala, شال šāl
bear in Malay
beruang, membawa
bear in Indonesian
beruang, bawa, membawa
bear in Persian
خرس xers, بُرْدَن burdan
bear in Thai
หมี mǐi, ถือ tʉ̌ʉ, ขน kǒn, แบก bɛ̀ɛk
bear in Vietnamese
gấu, vác, đầu cơ giá xuống, mang
bear in Myanmar
ဝက်ဝံ wak-wam, ဆောင် hcaung
Sindhi
کڻندو khṇ̃do
Kashmiri
ہاپُتھ hāputh, ہاپٕژ hāpụċ
Dzongkha
དོམ dom

Examples of bear in a sentence

  • what the market will bear
  • This bears all the hallmarks of a terrorist attack.
  • I would never move to Texas — I can't bear heat.
  • This reasoning will not bear much analysis.
  • Please bear with me as I try to find the book you need.
  • Great Falls bears north of Bozeman.

All 40 example sentences with bear

Synonyms of bear

22 more synonymsFewer synonyms

Antonyms

All synonyms and antonyms of bear

Forms of bear

Noun
pluralbears
alternative formbere
alternative form (obsolete)beare
Verb
third-person singular presentbears
present participlebearing
past participlebeared
pastbeared
pastbore
past participleborne
past participleborn
past participlebore
past (archaic)bare
past participle (colloquial)bore
second-person singular present (archaic)bearest

Past tense of bear: bore

Plural of bear: bears

Origin of bear

From Middle English bere, from Old English bera, from Proto-West Germanic *berō, from Proto-Germanic *berô (“bear”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰerH- (“brown”). Cognates Cognate with North Frisian beer (“bear”), Saterland Frisian Boar, Boare (“bear”), West Frisian bear (“bear”), Cimbrian and Mòcheno per (“bear”), Dutch beer (“bear”), German Bär (“bear”), German Low German Boor (“bear”), Limburgish baer, Béër (“bear”), Luxembourgish Bier (“bear”), Vilamovian baor, bar (“bear”), West Flemish beir (“bear”), Yiddish בער (ber, “bear”), Danish, Faroese, and Norwegian Bokmål bjørn (“bear”), Icelandic and Swedish björn (“bear”), Norwegian Nynorsk bjøinn, bjønn, bjørn (“bear”), Gothic *𐌱𐌰𐌹𐍂𐌰 (*baira, “bear”); also Latin fiber (“beaver”), Greek φρύνος (frýnos, “toad”), Latvian bērs (“bay, brown”), Lithuanian bėras (“bay, reddish brown”), Belarusian бабёр (babjór, “beaver”), Bulgarian бобър (bobăr, “beaver”), Czech bobr (“beaver”), Macedonian дабар (dabar, “beaver”), Polish bober, bóbr (“beaver”) Russian бобёр (bobjór), бобр (bobr, “beaver”), Serbo-Croatian да̀бар, dàbar (“beaver”), Slovak bobor (“beaver”), Slovene bober (“beaver”), Ukrainian бобе́р (bobér, “beaver”), Armenian բորենի...

From Middle English beren (“carry, bring forth”), from Old English beran (“to carry, bear, bring”), from Proto-West Germanic *beran, from Proto-Germanic *beraną, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰéreti, from *bʰer- (“to bear, carry”). Akin to Old High German beran (“carry”), Dutch baren, Danish bære, Norwegian Bokmål bære, Norwegian Nynorsk bera, German gebären, Gothic 𐌱𐌰𐌹𐍂𐌰𐌽 (bairan), Sanskrit भरति (bharati), Latin ferō, and Ancient Greek φέρω (phérō), Albanian bie (“to bring, to bear”), Russian брать (bratʹ, “to take”), Persian بردن (bordan, “to take, to carry”).

From Middle English bere (“pillowcase”), of obscure origin, but compare Old English hlēorbera (“cheek-cover”). Possibly cognate to Low German büre, whence German Bühre, which in turn has been compared to French bure.

Words formed from bear

Phrases with bear

158 more phrasesFewer phrases

Words that rhyme with bear

48 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about bear

What does bear mean?
Bear means a large, generally omnivorous mammal (a few species are purely carnivorous or herbivorous) of the family Ursidae; having shaggy fur, a very small tail, and flat feet.
What is bear in Hindi?
Bear in Hindi is भालो (bhālo), भालू (bhālū), रीछ (rīch). See Bear meaning in Hindi.
How do you use bear in a sentence?
what the market will bear
What part of speech is bear?
Bear can be a noun, a verb, an adjective or a proper noun.
How do you pronounce bear?
Bear is pronounced /bɛə/ (UK).
What is the plural of bear?
The plural of bear is bears.

Words near bear in the dictionary

  1. Beantowners
  2. beanwater
  3. beanweed
  4. beany
  5. beaproned
  6. bear
  7. bear a grudge
  8. bear a hand
  9. bear against
  10. bear animalcule
  11. bear away

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: bear (page history and authors); Bear (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-bear.ogg.

Cite this entry: “bear.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/bear. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.