bear

UK /beə/ US /ber/ Syllables: bear

Pronunciation

Noun A1 Beginner Neutral

A large, heavy animal with thick fur that lives in forests and mountains.

A bear is a large, heavy animal with thick fur, strong claws and a short tail. Bears live in forests, mountains and cold lands. Some kinds are brown, black or white, and they eat berries, fish, honey and other animals. Many bears sleep through the cold part of the year, which is called hibernation. The word is also a verb, and it is a different word: to bear means to carry or to put up with. Bear and bare sound the same, so be careful when you write them.

"They saw a bear searching for food near the campsite."

Example sentences

"The bear caught a fish in the river."

Level A1
"A brown bear and her cubs crossed the road."

Level A2
"The child hugged his teddy bear."

Level A1
"Polar bears live near the North Pole."

Level A2

Look-alikes and common mistakes

bare : Bare means uncovered or empty. It sounds the same as the animal, bear, but is spelled differently.
bear (verb) : To bear is to carry or to put up with. It is a different word with the same spelling.

Word family and forms

Forms: bears

polar bear teddy bear bearlike bear hug

Word partners

Words and phrases that often go with "bear".

a brown bear
a polar bear
a teddy bear
a bear hug
a bear cub
bear market

Idioms and phrases

a bear hug: A tight hug.; "My uncle gave me a bear hug when I arrived."

Origin

Bear comes from Old English bera and was used long before the year 1000. It is the same in many related languages, such as Dutch beer and German Bar.

Checked against: Wiktionary, the free dictionary, Dictionary.com.

How to remember it

Bear and bare sound the same. The animal is the bear with an e before the a.

Test yourself

Which word fits the gap? "The _____ caught a fish in the river."

Answer: bear

In your own words, what does "bear" mean?