water bear

noun

Examples of water bear in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Tardigrades, also known as water bears, aren’t just one species, but a phylum that contains many hundreds of species, each specialized to different ecological niches found across the planet — some of them very extreme. Joshua Rapp Learn, Discover Magazine, 3 July 2025 But tardigrades, also known as water bears or moss piglets, are among the toughest survivors evolution has ever carved out. Scott Travers, Forbes.com, 19 Apr. 2025 Tardigrades, also known as water bears, are microscopic animals that can survive for years without food or water. Daniel Oberhaus, WIRED, 5 Aug. 2019 Guided by their teachers, nearly 30,000 Danish schoolchildren, ages 7 to 16, helped scientists from the Natural History Museum of Denmark catalog tiny, water-dwelling animals known as tardigrades, or water bears, and their microhabitats. Paulina Rowińska, Smithsonian Magazine, 12 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for water bear

Word History

First Known Use

1848, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of water bear was in 1848

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Cite this Entry

“Water bear.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/water%20bear. Accessed 19 Jul. 2025.

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