bear on
Britishverb
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to be relevant to; relate to
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to be burdensome to or afflict
his misdeeds bore heavily on his conscience
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.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer vowed to "bring the full power of the state to bear" on the issue.
From BBC ● Apr. 30, 2026
Morally if not legally, they deserve more grief than whatever the Justice Department manages to bring to bear on them, which won’t be much.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 8, 2026
Jay Goldberg, a Seaport Research analyst who’s the lone bear on Nvidia’s stock, said the company “is having a harder time moving the needle” lately.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 15, 2026
The fire put a strain too big to bear on Kaslow’s relationship with his long-term girlfriend.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 17, 2025
This tale I must tell in full, for only Elrond has heard it yet, and that in brief; but it will bear on all that we must resolve.
From "The Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
