cave bear

noun

: a very large extinct bear (Ursus spelaeus) known especially from Pleistocene deposits in European caves

Examples of cave bear in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Another possible flute from Slovenia, made from a cave bear femur, was dated to over 50,000 years ago and is suggested to have been made by Neanderthals. Smithsonian Magazine, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 Oct. 2024 Related article Stone Age humans stepped out in cave bear fur 300,000 years ago However, historical evidence exists for earlier tools that were used for making clothes, albeit with less precision. Jacopo Prisco, CNN, 8 July 2024 The researchers also concluded that hibernating cave bears and denning hyenas primarily used the cave, which had only periodic human presence. Katie Hunt, CNN, 1 Feb. 2024 Inspection of nearby animal teeth and bones revealed that these early humans existed amid a harsh, tundra landscape populated by reindeer, cave bears, horses and woolly rhinoceros in conditions comparable to modern Siberia or northern Scandinavia. Catherine Duncan, Smithsonian Magazine, 2 Feb. 2024 See all Example Sentences for cave bear 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cave 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

1865, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of cave bear was in 1865

Dictionary Entries Near cave bear

Cite this Entry

“Cave bear.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cave%20bear. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

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