Pimp my English | Bare and bear

By Anna Malczyk

Bare and bear are homophones, which are words that sound the same but are spelled differently. Here’s a quick overview of just some their different meanings – you may be surprised how many there are!

Bare

 “To be naked or unadorned”, either in the sense of not wearing any clothing, or of a wall or piece of furniture not having any decorations.

•    When my cousin was three, he loved running around bare.
•    When we took down out paintings, the room looked bare.

 “To reveal something”, by either physically or metaphorically uncovering it.

•    She bared her arm to show her tattoo.
•    In her new biography, the actress bares all!

 “A just sufficient quantity”, an amount that is small but that covers the basics.

•    We went camping and packed the bare necessities.
•    We had barely enough time to get to the movies.

Bear

“To carry or support something heavy”, either literally or emotionally.

•    The columns bear the weight of the whole balcony.
•    He bears emotional scars from the war.

“To give birth”.

•    Nicole will bear her child in a few months.

“To head in a certain direction”, generally following a compass direction.

•    Bear right at the overpass, then take the first turnoff.
•    I couldn’t get my bearings after the storm.

“To be able to withstand something” – in other words, to be able to cope with a situation.

•    I can’t bear the noisy neighbours!
•    Bear with me, supper’s almost ready.

 “A big fuzzy mammal”, cute from a distance but pretty scary if it’s chasing you!

•    We saw a brown bear at the nature reserve.
•    My favourite toy is my old teddy bear.