bear

noun

1. (countable, uncountable)A large, generally omnivorous mammal (a few species are purely carnivorous or herbivorous), having shaggy fur, a very small tail, and flat feet; a member of the family Ursidae.
2. (uncountable)A large, generally omnivorous mammal (a few species are purely carnivorous or herbivorous), having shaggy fur, a very small tail, and flat feet; a member of the family Ursidae.

   “We had barbecued bear for dinner.”

3. (countable, figuratively, uncountable)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,) do with him what you would, he would always have been a bear.'”

4. (countable, uncountable)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 ensued to them by their buying on a rising price on the accompt day […]”

5. (US, countable, slang, uncountable)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 a-huntin' bear."”

   “'The bear's pulling somebody off there at 74,' reported someone else.”

   “He was listening for reports of Kojaks with Kodaks, or bear sightings (cop alerts) at his front door (ahead of him), especially plain wrappers (unmarked police cars) parked at specific yardsticks (mile-markers) taking pictures […]”

6. (countable, slang, uncountable)A large, hairy man, especially one who is homosexual.

   “Bears are usually hunky, chunky types reminiscent of railroad engineers and former football greats.”

   “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.”

   “I have everything it takes to be a bear: broad shoulders, full beard, semibald pate, and lots of body hair. But I don't want to be a fetish.”

   “There are numerous social organizations for bears in most parts of the United States. Lesbians don't have such prominent sexual subcultures as gay men, although, as just mentioned, some lesbians are into BDSM practices.”

7. (Australia, countable, uncountable)A koala (bear).

   “Bunyip Bluegum was a tidy bear, he objected to whisker soup[.]”

8. (countable, uncountable)A portable punching machine.
9. (countable, uncountable)A block covered with coarse matting, used to scour the deck.
10. (countable, uncountable)The fifteenth Lenormand card.
11. (US, colloquial, countable, uncountable)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."”

12. (alt-of, alternative, uncountable)Alternative spelling of bere (“barley”).

    “There are several plots of those species of barley called big, which is six-rowed barley; or bear, which is four-rowed, cultivated.”

    “Bigg or bear, with four grains on the ear, was the kind of barley.”

    “Two stacks of beare, of xx boules,”

    “[…] one wheat stack, one half-stack of corn, and a little hay, all standing in the barnyard; four stacks of bear in the barn, about three bolls of bear lying on the barn floor, two stacks of corn in the barn, […]”

    “Your Horses are Getting Pease Straw, and looking very well. The 2 Stacks of Bear formerly mentioned as Put in by Mr Bookless is not fully dressed as yet so that I cannot say at present what Quantity they may Produce .”

13. (alt-of, alternative, uncountable)Alternative spelling of bere (“pillowcase”).

    “And, according to this, one of my Neighbours made a Bag, like a Pillow-bear, of the ordinary six-penny yard Cloth, and boiled his Hops in it half an Hour; then he took them out, and put in another Bag of the like Quantity of fresh Hops, […]”

    “ij payer of schete, ij pelows wt the berys,”

    “1641.—14 yards of femble cloth, 12s. ; 8 yards of linen, 6s. 8d. ; 20 yards of harden, 10s. ; 5 linen sheets, 1l. ; 7 linen pillow bears, 8s. ; 2 femble sheets and a line hard sheet, 10s. ; 3 linen towels, 4s. ; 6 lin curtains and a vallance, 12s. ; […]”

    “I give to my Grand Child Lidea Carpenter the Coverlid that her mother spun and my pillow bear and a pint Cup & my great Pott that belongs to the Pott and Trammels.”

    “[…] a man's eyes played him false, sitting him before tables proper with damask and pewter, leading him to fall into beds gracious with small and large feather beds for softness and pillowed luxuriously under pretty checked linen pillow bears.”

verb

1. (transitive)To endeavour to depress the price of, or prices in.

   “to bear a railroad stock”

   “to bear the market”

2. (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.”

   “The little boat bore us to our destination.”

   “This plant's light and fluffy seeds may be borne by the wind to remote islands.”

   “what the market will bear”

3. (transitive)To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.

   “the right to bear arms”

4. (transitive)To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.

   “The queen bore the royal scepter and crown as she processed into the hall.”

5. (intransitive, rare, transitive)To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.

   “The scan showed that the ewe was bearing twins.”

6. (transitive)To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.

   “She still bears the scars from a cycling accident.”

   “The stone bears a short inscription.”

   “This bears all the hallmarks of a terrorist attack.”

   “[…] male stag-beetles often bear wounds from the huge mandibles of other males.”

7. (transitive)To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.

   “The shield bore a red cross.”

8. (transitive)To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.

   “He bore the look of a defeated man.”

   “The body was unclothed, and bore the appearance of being washed up by the sea.”

9. (transitive)To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.

   “The school still bears the name of its founder.”

   “[…] imitations that bear the same name as the things […]”

   “Heinrich Olbers described the paradox that bears his name in 1823.”

10. (transitive)To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.

    “The dictator bears a terrible reputation for cruelty.”

11. (transitive, usually)To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.

    “The bond bears a fixed interest rate of 3.5%.”

12. (transitive)To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.

    “Only the male Indian elephant bears tusks.”

13. (transitive)To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.

    “to bear a grudge, to bear ill will”

    “the ancient grudge I bear him”

14. (rare, transitive)To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.

    “The brothers had always borne one another respect.”

15. (transitive)To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.

    “to bear life”

16. (transitive)To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.

    “The punishment bears no relation to the crime.”

17. (transitive)To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.

    “His achievements bear testimony to his ability.”

    “The jury could see he was bearing false witness.”

18. (transitive)To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.

    “This word no longer bears its original meaning.”

    “Her sentence bore that she should stand a certain time upon the platform.”

19. (reflexive, transitive)To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.

    “She bore herself well throughout the ordeal.”

    “Thus must thou thy body bear.”

    “Hath he borne himself penitently in prison?”

20. (rare, transitive)To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.

    “Every man should bear rule in his own house.”

21. (intransitive, obsolete, transitive)To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.
22. (obsolete, rare, transitive)To carry or convey, literally or figuratively.

    “Bear them to my house.”

23. (transitive)To support, sustain, or endure.

    “This stone bears most of the weight.”

24. To support, sustain, or endure.

    “The pain is too much for me to bear.”

    “It doesn’t bear thinking about.”

    “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.”

25. (transitive)To support, sustain, or endure.

    “The hirer must bear the cost of any repairs.”

    “He shall bear their iniquities.”

    “What have you gotten there under your arm, Daughter? somewhat, I hope, that will bear your Charges in your Pilgrimage.”

26. (transitive)To support, sustain, or endure.

    “In all criminal cases the most favourable interpretation should be put on words that they can possibly bear.”

27. (transitive)To support, sustain, or endure.

    “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.”

28. (transitive)To support, keep up, or maintain.

    “[…] admitted to that equal sky, / His faithful dog shall bear him company.”

29. (transitive)To support, keep up, or maintain.

    “[…] 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.”

30. (intransitive, usually, with-on)To press or impinge upon.

    “The rope has frayed where it bears on the rim of the wheel.”

    “These men therefore bear hard upon the suspected party.”

31. (figuratively, intransitive)To press or impinge upon.

    “to bring arguments to bear”

    “How does this bear on the question?”

32. (intransitive)To press or impinge upon.

    “The cannons were wheeled around to bear upon the advancing troops.”

    “2012, Ronald D. Utt, Ships of Oak, Guns of Iron 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.”

33. (ditransitive, transitive)To produce, yield, give birth to.

    “In Troy she becomes Paris’ wife, bearing him several children, all of whom die in infancy.”

    “The twins were borne by an Italian mother.”

    “The powerful Bene Gesserit sisterhood for ninety generations has been manipulating bloodlines to produce the Kwisatz Haderach, a superbeing. On Caladan, Jessica, a member of the sisterhood and the bound concubine of Duke Leto Atreides, had been ordered to bear only daughters. Because of her love for the duke, she disobeyed and gave birth to a son: Paul, Paul Atreides.”

34. (intransitive, transitive, uncommon)To produce, yield, give birth to.

    “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.”

35. (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.”

    “Great Falls bears north of Bozeman.”

36. (obsolete, transitive)To gain or win.

    “Some think to bear it by speaking a great word.”

    “She was […] found not guilty, through bearing of friends and bribing of the judge.”

adj

1. (not-comparable)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.”

name

1. A surname.
2. 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.”

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.”