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

The famed March Madness-style bracket competition that pits some of Katmai National Park and Preserve's bulkiest and most beloved brown bears against each other in the arena of public opinion is returning for its 11th year later this month. —Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 5 Sep. 2025

The skull of a brown bear discovered in 2016 at the Viminacium amphitheatre in Serbia and recently analyzed provides the first physical evidence of the species’ involvement in Roman spectacles, as well as insights into its life in captivity, according to the study. —Lauren Liebhaber, Miami Herald, 4 Sep. 2025

Alaska authorities are searching for the bear, believed to be a brown bear, on foot and via drone but haven’t found it yet. —Brie Stimson, FOXNews.com, 30 Aug. 2025

Conservation efforts for brown bears on the Kenai Peninsula have been ongoing for at least two decades. —Hanna Park, CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2025

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