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 brown bear population has doubled in three decades and now stands at around 12,000, while the number of Asian black bears has climbed on the main Honshu island, reaching 42,000, according to a 2025 government report. —CBS News, 8 May 2026

Snowpack levels influence stream flow, which in turn affects salmon runs—the primary food source for brown bears. —Debbie Olsen, Travel + Leisure, 2 May 2026

In a video shared by Katmai Conservancy, National Park Service (NPS) maintenance crews spotted the roughly large adult male brown bear (Ursus arctos) walking along on a patch of ice in the park. —Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 30 Apr. 2026

Populations of lynx, brown bears, and moose have since rebounded. —Lizzie Johnson, New Yorker, 25 Apr. 2026

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