bear

[ bair ]

/ bɛər /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR bear ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), bore or (Archaic) bare; borne or born; bear·ing.

to hold up; support: to bear the weight of the roof.

to hold or remain firm under (a load): The roof will not bear the strain of his weight.

to bring forth (young); give birth to: to bear a child.

to produce by natural growth: a tree that bears fruit.

to hold up under; be capable of: His claim doesn't bear close examination.

to press or push against: The crowd was borne back by the police.

to hold or carry (oneself, one's body, one's head, etc.): to bear oneself erectly.

to conduct (oneself): to bear oneself bravely.

to suffer; endure; undergo: to bear the blame.

to sustain without yielding or suffering injury; tolerate (usually used in negative constructions, unless qualified): I can't bear your nagging. I can hardly bear to see her suffering so.

to be fit for or worthy of: It doesn't bear repeating.

to carry; bring: to bear gifts.

to carry in the mind or heart: to bear love; to bear malice.

to transmit or spread (gossip, tales, etc.).

to render; afford; give: to bear witness; to bear testimony.

to lead; guide; take: They bore him home.

to have and be entitled to: to bear title.

to exhibit; show: to bear a resemblance.

to accept or have, as an obligation: to bear responsibility; to bear the cost.

to stand in (a relation or ratio); have or show correlatively: the relation that price bears to profit.

to possess, as a quality or characteristic; have in or on: to bear traces; to bear an inscription.

to have and use; exercise: to bear authority; to bear sway.

verb (used without object), bore or (Archaic) bare; borne or born; bear·ing.

to tend in a course or direction; move; go: to bear west; to bear left at the fork in the road.

to be located or situated: The lighthouse bears due north.

to bring forth young or fruit: Next year the tree will bear.

Verb Phrases

bear down,

to press or weigh down.
to strive harder; intensify one's efforts: We can't hope to finish unless everyone bears down.
Nautical. to approach from windward, as a ship: The cutter was bearing down the channel at twelve knots.

bear down on/upon,

to press or weigh down on.
to strive toward.
to approach something rapidly.
Nautical. to approach (another vessel) from windward: The sloop bore down on us, narrowly missing our stern.

bear off,

Nautical. to keep (a boat) from touching or rubbing against a dock, another boat, etc.
Nautical. to steer away.
Backgammon. to remove the stones from the board after they are all home.

bear on/upon, to affect, relate to, or have connection with; be relevant to: This information may bear on the case.

bear out, to substantiate; confirm: The facts bear me out.

bear up, to endure; face hardship bravely: It is inspiring to see them bearing up so well.

bear with, to be patient or forbearing with: Please bear with me until I finish the story.

Idioms for bear

bring to bear, to concentrate on with a specific purpose: Pressure was brought to bear on those with overdue accounts.

Origin of bear

before 900; Middle English beren, Old English beran; cognate with Old Saxon, Old High German beran, Dutch baren, Old Frisian, Old Norse bera, Gothic bairan, German ( ge)bären, Russian berët (he) takes, Albanian bie, Tocharian pär-, Phrygian ab-beret (he) brings, Latin ferre, Old Irish berid (he) carries, Armenian berem, Greek phérein, Sanskrit bhárati, Avestan baraiti; < Indo-European *bher- (see -fer, -phore)

SYNONYMS FOR bear

1 uphold, sustain.

4 yield.

6 thrust, drive, force.

10 brook, abide, suffer.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR bear ON THESAURUS.COM

synonym study for bear

10. Bear, stand, endure refer to supporting the burden of something distressing, irksome, or painful. Bear and stand are close synonyms and have a general sense of withstanding: to bear a disappointment well; to stand a loss. Endure implies continued resistance and patience in bearing through a long time: to endure torture.

usage note for bear

Since the latter part of the 18th century, a distinction has been made between born and borne as past participles of the verb bear1 . Borne is the past participle in all senses that do not refer to physical birth: The wheatfields have borne abundantly this year. Judges have always borne a burden of responsibility. Borne is also the participle when the sense is “to bring forth (young)” and the focus is on the mother rather than on the child. In such cases, borne is preceded by a form of have or followed by by: Anna had borne a son the previous year. Two children borne by her earlier were already grown. When the focus is on the offspring or on something brought forth as if by birth, born is the standard spelling, and it occurs only in passive constructions: My friend was born in Ohio. No children have been born at the South Pole. A strange desire was born of the tragic experience. Born is also an adjective meaning “by birth,” “innate,” or “native”: born free; a born troublemaker; Mexican-born.

Words nearby bear

beanie, beano, beanpole, beanshooter, beanstalk, bear, bear a grudge, bear animalcule, bear claw, bear down, bear fruit

British Dictionary definitions for bear down (1 of 4)

bear down

verb (intr, adverb; often foll by on or upon)

to press or weigh down

to approach in a determined or threatening manner

(of a vessel) to make an approach (to another vessel, obstacle, etc) from windward

(of a woman during childbirth) to exert a voluntary muscular pressure to assist delivery

British Dictionary definitions for bear down (2 of 4)

Bear

/ (bɛə) /

noun the Bear

the English name for Ursa Major, Ursa Minor

an informal name for Russia

British Dictionary definitions for bear down (3 of 4)

bear ¹

/ (bɛə) /

verb bears, bearing, bore or borne (mainly tr)

to support or hold up; sustain

to bring or convey to bear gifts

to take, accept, or assume the responsibility of to bear an expense

(past participle born in passive use except when foll by by) to give birth to to bear children

(also intr) to produce by or as if by natural growth to bear fruit

to tolerate or endure she couldn't bear him

to admit of; sustain his story does not bear scrutiny

to hold in the conscious mind or in one's feelings to bear a grudge; I'll bear that idea in mind

to show or be marked with he still bears the scars

to transmit or spread to bear gossip

to render or supply (esp in the phrase bear witness)

to conduct or manage (oneself, the body, etc) she bore her head high

to have, be, or stand in (relation or comparison) his account bears no relation to the facts

(intr) to move, be located, or lie in a specified direction the way bears east

to have by right; be entitled to (esp in the phrase bear title)

bear a hand to give assistance

bring to bear to bring into operation or effect he brought his knowledge to bear on the situation

See also bear down, bear off, bear on, bear out, bear up, bear with, born

Word Origin for bear

Old English beran; related to Old Norse bera, Old High German beran to carry, Latin ferre, Greek pherein to bear, Sanskrit bharati he carries

British Dictionary definitions for bear down (4 of 4)

bear ²

/ (bɛə) /

noun plural bears or bear

any plantigrade mammal of the family Ursidae : order Carnivora (carnivores). Bears are typically massive omnivorous animals with a large head, a long shaggy coat, and strong claws See also black bear, brown bear, polar bear Related adjective: ursine

any of various bearlike animals, such as the koala and the ant bear

a clumsy, churlish, or ill-mannered person

a teddy bear

stock exchange

a speculator who sells in anticipation of falling prices to make a profit on repurchase
(as modifier)a bear market Compare bull 1 (def. 5)

verb bears, bearing or beared

(tr) to lower or attempt to lower the price or prices of (a stock market or a security) by speculative selling

Word Origin for bear

Old English bera; related to Old Norse bjorn, Old High German bero

Idioms and Phrases with bear down (1 of 2)

bear down

Press or weigh down on someone or something. For example, This pen doesn't write unless you bear down hard on it. [Late 1600s]

Try hard, intensify one's efforts, as in If you'll just bear down, you'll pass the test.

Move forward in a pressing or threatening way, as in The ferry bore down on our little skiff. This usage was originally nautical. [Early 1700s]

Idioms and Phrases with bear down (2 of 2)

bear

In addition to the idioms beginning with bear

bear a grudge
bear down
beard the lion
bear fruit
bear in mind
bear one's cross
bear out
bear the brunt
bear up
bear with

also see:

bring to bear
cross as a bear
cross to bear
grin and bear it
loaded for bear

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

bear

verb (used with object), bore or (Archaic) bare; borne or born; bear·ing.

verb (used without object), bore or (Archaic) bare; borne or born; bear·ing.

Verb Phrases

Idioms for bear

Origin of bear

SYNONYMS FOR bear

synonym study for bear

usage note for bear

Words nearby bear

British Dictionary definitions for bear down (1 of 4)

verb (intr, adverb; often foll by on or upon)

British Dictionary definitions for bear down (2 of 4)

noun the Bear

British Dictionary definitions for bear down (3 of 4)

verb bears, bearing, bore or borne (mainly tr)

Word Origin for bear

British Dictionary definitions for bear down (4 of 4)

noun plural bears or bear

verb bears, bearing or beared

Word Origin for bear

Idioms and Phrases with bear down (1 of 2)

Idioms and Phrases with bear down (2 of 2)

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

bear

verb (used with object), bore or (Archaic) bare; borne or born; bear·ing.

verb (used without object), bore or (Archaic) bare; borne or born; bear·ing.

Verb Phrases

Idioms for bear

Origin of bear

SYNONYMS FOR bear

synonym study for bear

usage note for bear

Words nearby bear

Words related to bear down

(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []) .push({}); British Dictionary definitions for bear down (1 of 4)

verb (intr, adverb; often foll by on or upon)

British Dictionary definitions for bear down (2 of 4)

noun the Bear

British Dictionary definitions for bear down (3 of 4)

verb bears, bearing, bore or borne (mainly tr)

Word Origin for bear

British Dictionary definitions for bear down (4 of 4)

noun plural bears or bear

verb bears, bearing or beared

Word Origin for bear

Idioms and Phrases with bear down (1 of 2)

Idioms and Phrases with bear down (2 of 2)

British Dictionary definitions for bear down (1 of 4)