black bear

American  

noun

1. a medium-sized North American bear, Ursus (Euarctos ) americanus, relatively common in uninhabited mountainous areas, ranging from light brown to black with a straight brown muzzle: northern populations may be gray to near-white.

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black bear British  

noun

1. a bear, Euarctos (or Ursus ) americanus , inhabiting forests of North America. It is smaller and less ferocious than the brown bear

2. a bear, Selenarctos thibetanus , of central and E Asia, whose coat is black with a pale V-shaped mark on the chest

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Etymology

Origin of black bear

First recorded in 1735–45

Example Sentences

But a well-known black bear in the area, known as Rose, had other plans for the home, having already settled into her new den in the home’s crawl space.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 26, 2026

For six weeks, a massive male black bear made himself comfortable in another Altadena home not far from the most recent incident.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 13, 2026

She’s also draped in fur—standard attire for a black bear.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 17, 2025

A wild, very “polite” and possibly lonely black bear recently paid a visit to its neighbors at a Northern California zoo.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 21, 2025

I try and animate my face as I recall the event, a true story, in which I'd foolishly challenged a black bear over the rights to a beehive.

From "The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins