bear (redirected from don't bear thinking about)

be like a bear with a sore head (British & Australian, humorous)

to be in a bad mood which causes you to treat other people badly and complain a lot. If his newspaper doesn't arrive by breakfast time he's like a bear with a sore head.

See also: head, like, sore

bear a grudge

to continue to feel angry or not friendly towards someone who has done something to upset you in the past. She got the job I applied for, but I'm not one to bear a grudge. He still bears a grudge against her because she refused to go out with him years ago. (sometimes + against)

bear fruit

if something someone does bears fruit, it produces successful results. The work he began did not bear fruit until after his death.

See also: fruit

a bear hug

an action in which you put your arms tightly around someone and hold them close to you in order to show them affection. Her cousin gave her an affectionate bear hug which almost took her breath away.

bear testimony/witness to something (formal)

if something bears testimony to a fact, it proves that it is true. The numerous awards on his walls bear witness to his great success.

See also: witness

bear/keep something in mind

to remember a piece of information when you are making decisions or thinking about a matter. Bearing in mind that she's had so little experience, I thought she did very well. ((often + that)) Of course, repair work on older buildings is an expensive business and that's always something to be borne in mind.

See also: keep, mind

bear/take the brunt of something

to receive the worst part of something unpleasant or harmful, such as an attack. The oldest parts of the town bore the brunt of the missile attacks.

See also: brunt, take

bring something to bear (formal)

to use influence, arguments, or threats in order to change a situation. Pressure should be brought to bear on the illegal regime and support given to the resistance. (often + on)

See also: bring

a cross (someone has) to bear (British & Australian, American & Australian)

an unpleasant situation or responsibility that you must accept because you cannot change it. Someone has to look after mother and because I live the closest it's a cross I have to bear.

See also: cross

Everyone has their cross to bear.

a cross (someone has) to bear - an unpleasant situation or responsibility that you must accept because you cannot change it. I hate my red hair and pale skin, but everyone has their cross to bear.

See also: cross, everyone, has

grin and bear it

to accept an unpleasant or difficult situation because there is nothing you can do to improve it. I don't want to spend the whole weekend working but I guess I'll just have to grin and bear it.

See also: grin

loaded for bear (American, informal)

ready and eager to deal with something that is going to be difficult. Their team came out onto the field, loaded for bear, but our defense stopped them.

See also: loaded

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bear arms

to carry weapons. The court stated that the right of an individual to keep and bear arms is not guaranteed by the Second Amendment.

Usage notes: usually used in the phrases right to bear arms and keep and bear armswhich, of course, has nothing to do with the right to bare arms -CB

See also: arm

bear down (on someone/something)

1. to use all your effort to do something. Our students will have to bear down if they want to pass their exams.

2. to push or press on something. When washing your car, try not to bear down too hard or you'll take off the paint.

3. to move toward someone or something in a threatening way. Another storm is bearing down on northern California. The car gathered speed and bore down on him, so he jumped into the ditch.

See also: down

bear fruit

1. to produce a result that is wanted or desired. Some of the changes in the election laws are already bearing fruit.

2. to produce successful results. Opening a new store in San Francisco has already borne fruit for the company.

Etymology: based on the idea that getting results is like getting fruit from a plant

See also: fruit

bear out something

to support the truth of something. Every opinion poll taken bears out our belief that a different jury would have reached a different verdict.

Usage notes: often used in the form borne out by: Her theories were not borne out by the research I did.

bear the brunt of something

to get the greater amount or larger part of something bad. Ordinary citizens will bear the brunt of higher taxes. The oldest parts of the town bore the brunt of the missile attacks.

See also: brunt

bear up

to be brave. I wonder where she finds the strength to bear up under so much unfair criticism.

bear with someone/something

to be patient with someone or something. Just bear with me while I finish downloading this file.

bear witness to something

to show by your existence that something is true. The survivors of this disaster bear witness to a terrible event we would like to forget.

See also: witness

bring something to bear

to use something to achieve a result. She said that they were attempting to bring additional pressure to bear on the government.

Usage notes: sometimes used in the form something was brought to bear: It will be a major issue for the community because such strong arguments can be brought to bear on both sides of it.

See also: bring

grin and bear it

to accept something unpleasant with good humor. Bad things happen and you just have to learn to grin and bear it.

See also: grin