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

Illustration of brown bear

Examples of brown bear in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web National Geographic recommends bear-watching at the Alaska national park along the Pacific Coast, which has the highest concentration of brown bears in the world. USA TODAY, 30 Jan. 2024 Scientists confirmed that the virus jumped to wild mammals in May 2022 and has since been detected in dozens of mammals including pumas, foxes, skunks, and brown bears. Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 17 Jan. 2024 The National Park Service estimates that 2,200 brown bears inhabit the park, a number exceeding the people who live on the peninsula. Pilar Arias, Fox News, 4 Oct. 2023 The secret to this success is that—much like beavers, brown bears and elephants—giant tortoises are ecological architects. Syris Valentine, Smithsonian Magazine, 30 Oct. 2023 In southern portions of the Russian Far East, these tigers coexist with Eurasian brown bears and Asiatic black bears. Matthew Every, Field & Stream, 21 Feb. 2024 The deputy and man both speculated that the animals were brown bears or grizzly bears. Kerry Breen, CBS News, 1 Feb. 2024 In addition to caribou, the park’s many mammal species include moose, grey wolves, brown bears, wolverines, arctic foxes, snowshoe hares and muskox, which are native to Alaska. Eve Chen, USA TODAY, 13 Jan. 2024 Meanwhile, polar bears and brown bears dominate the land — taking down seals and walruses on the one hand and moose and deer on the other — topping the list of large land predators alive on our planet. Joshua Rapp Learn, Discover Magazine, 6 Dec. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'brown bear.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1757, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of brown bear was in 1757

Dictionary Entries Near brown bear

Cite this Entry

“Brown bear.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/brown%20bear. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

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

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