bear

I UK [beə(r)] / US [ber] verb [transitive]
Word forms "bear":
present tense I/you/we/they bear he/she/it bears present participle bearing past tense bore UK [bɔː(r)] / US [bɔr] past participle borne UK [bɔː(r)n] / US [bɔrn]
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1) [usually in negatives or questions] if you cannot bear something, you cannot accept or do it because it makes you very unhappy

can't bear doing something/to do something:

Sue can't bear to be parted from her baby daughter.

I can't bear seeing food thrown away.

can hardly bear to do something:

I could hardly bear to watch.

can't bear the thought/idea of:

She couldn't bear the thought of moving again.

more than someone can bear:

Being made a fool of in front of a roomful of people was more than he could bear.

a) [usually in negatives or questions] if you cannot bear someone or something, you dislike them very much

Most of her friends can't bear her husband.

b) to accept a difficult or unpleasant situation, especially without complaining

She bore all her suffering with incredible patience.

The pain was more than I could bear.

2) formal to seem to be a particular kind of thing or to have particular qualities

bear the hallmarks/signs/stamp of something:

The incident bore all the hallmarks of a racist attack.

a) to seem to be similar to something or related to it in some way

bear a resemblance/relation/similarity to:

His description bore no relation to reality.

b) to have features or qualities that show that something happened in the past

bear the scars/marks of something:

Many buildings in the town still bear the scars of the bombing.

3)

a) formal if something bears writing or a design, that writing or design is on it

Every new coin bears a date.

a blue banner bearing the words "Civil Rights March"

bear someone's signature:

The letter bore the signature of her grandfather.

b) formal to have a particular name or title

The city still bears the French name of Aix-la-Chapelle.

4) literary to carry or take someone or something somewhere

a coffin bearing the remains of an old man

a) to support the weight of something

The floorboards could not bear the weight of the piano.

b) [usually passive] literary if something is borne along by wind, air, or water, it is moved along by it

c) to carry or hold something, for example a weapon

a missile-bearing warship

bear arms (= carry weapons):

Do you support the citizen's right to bear arms?

5)

a) formal to give birth to a child

The ewes usually bear twin lambs.

bear someone something:

She bore him three sons.

b) if a plant bears flowers or fruit, it produces them

The new stems bear the flowers.

6) to have a particular feeling towards someone

bear a grudge (= to continue to dislike someone because of a past event):

I hope you don't still bear a grudge against me.

bear someone something:

He had caused untold suffering, but they bore him no bitterness.

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bear the cost/expense etc — to pay for something

companies with enough money to bear the enormous expense of testing a new drug

bear left/right — to take the road or path on the left/right as you are walking or driving

bear the strain/pressure — to be able to continue in a very difficult situation

I don't think our relationship could bear the strain of her mother visiting for a month.

- bear something in mind

- bear the responsibility

- bear witness

- bear yourself

- bring something to bear

- not bear thinking about

Phrasal verbs:

- bear down

- bear on

- bear out

- bear up

- bear with

See:

fruit I

II UK [beə(r)] / US [ber] noun [countable]
Word forms "bear":
singular bear plural bears
**

1) a large wild animal with thick fur. There are several different types of bears, for example the polar bear and the grizzly bear. A young bear is called a bear cub.

a) a children's soft toy that looks like a friendly bear

b) used in the name of some animals that are similar to bears

koala bear

2) business someone who expects the prices of shares to fall, so they sell them

See:

bull 2)

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- be like a bear with a sore head