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teddy bear

American  

noun

  1. a toy bear, especially a stuffed one.


teddy bear British  

noun

  1. Often shortened to: teddy.  a stuffed toy bear made from soft or fluffy material

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of teddy bear

1905–10, after Theodore Roosevelt, called Teddy, who is said to have saved the life of a bear cub while hunting

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The bear was auctioned by Hansons Auctioneers, whose Teddy bear consultant dubbed the antique Mr Cinnamon because of its colour.

From BBC • Aug. 16, 2023

When an infant utters “te-te,” the parent happily offers the baby “Teddy,” so the sound “te-te” acquires the meaning of the Teddy bear.

From Scientific American • May 31, 2022

From the stuffed animal kingdom comes another common Valentine’s Day gift, a Teddy bear.

From New York Times • Feb. 4, 2022

“He was a Teddy bear of a man who loved Jesus and his family so deeply and well,” Nashville radio veteran Karla Henry told The Washington Times.

From Washington Times • Jul. 9, 2021

I only remember Nancy’s Teddy bear staring at me.

From "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote