brown bear

noun

: any of several chiefly brown bears that are usually considered a single species (Ursus arctos), that formerly inhabited western North America from Alaska to northern Mexico and much of Europe and Asia but are now much restricted in range, and that include the grizzly bear and Kodiak bear

Illustration of brown bear

Examples of brown bear in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

At Glacier Bay, passengers take in the scenery, from the Fairweather Mountains to wildlife like sea otters and brown bears. —Nathan Diller, USA TODAY, 14 Jan. 2025

Russia transferred more than 70 animals, including an African lion and two brown bears, to a zoo in the North Korean capital Pyongyang from Moscow’s zoo, the Russian government said on Wednesday. —Reuters, NBC News, 20 Nov. 2024

In August, authorities said a hunter was seriously injured in Alaska after being mauled by a brown bear and shot during an effort to fend it off. —Stephen Smith, CBS News, 31 Oct. 2024

One unique population of brown bears in a remote part of Alaska, for example, appears to be made up of the descendants of a mix of brown bear and polar bear ancestors. —Rebecca Heisman, Scientific American, 17 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1757, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for brown bear

• abwehr
• affair
• affaire
• airfare
• altair
• armchair
• aware
• beware
• bugbear
• carfare
• childcare
• compare

Kids Definition

brown bear

noun

: any of several bears that are mostly brown in color, are usually lumped together in a single species including the grizzly bear, and at one time inhabited much of North America from Alaska to northern Mexico as well as Europe and Asia