bear² /bār/

1. A heavy carnivorous animal with long shaggy hair and hooked claws
2. Also applied to other unrelated animals, such as the koala
3. A teddy bear
4. A person who sells stocks for delivery at a future date, anticipating a fall in price, opp to bull (the old phrase a bearskin jobber suggests an origin in the proverbial phrase, to sell the bearskin before one has caught the bear; stock exchange)
5. The name of two constellations, the Great Bear and the Little Bear (Ursa Major and Minor)
6. Any rude, rough or ill-mannered fellow

To act as a bear

To lower the price of (a stock) or depress (a market) by selling speculatively

bearˈish adjective

1. Like a bear in manners
2. Inclining towards, anticipating, a fall in price (stock exchange)

bearˈishly adverb

bearˈishness noun

bear-animalˈcule noun

A tardigrade, a kind of minute arthropod with four pairs of stumpy legs

bearˈ-baiting noun

The former sport of setting dogs to attack a bear

bearˈberry noun

1. A trailing plant (genus Arctostaphylos) of the family Ericaceae
2. Extended to various plants

bearˈbine noun

A bindweed

bearˈcat noun

The lesser or red panda

bear garden noun

1. An enclosure for bear-baiting or for exhibiting bears
2. A turbulent assembly

bear hug noun

1. A hold in which one wraps one's arms tightly around one's opponent's arms and upper body (wrestling)
2. A similar tight hug

bearˈ-lead transitive verb

To lead about, eg a performing bear, but also more gen to supervise, act as tutor to

bear market noun (stock exchange)

A market in which prices are falling

bear pit noun

An enclosure for bears

bear'sˈ-breech noun

Acanthus

bear'sˈ-ear noun

Auricula

bear'sˈ-foot noun

Black hellebore

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