bear hug
noun
a strong, tight embrace.
bear hug
1 Americannoun
-
a strong, tight embrace.
My father gave me a big bear hug as soon as I stepped out of the taxi.
-
Wrestling. a hold in which one contestant locks both arms around the other in order to make the opponent fall to the mat.
bear-hug
2
American
[bair-huhg]
/ ˈbɛərˌhʌg /
verb (used with object)
bear-hugged,
bear-hugging
bear hug
British
noun
-
a wrestling hold in which the arms are locked tightly round an opponent's chest and arms
-
any similar tight embrace
-
commerce an approach to the board of one company by another to indicate that an offer is to be made for their shares
Etymology
Origin of bear hug1
First recorded in 1920–25
Origin of bear-hug2
First recorded in 1955–60
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.
See Examples For:
After he grounded out in his final at-bat, Freeman enveloped him in an impromptu bear hug.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026
Yvonne Carvalho, a 5-foot dynamo with oversize black glasses and purple MAC lipstick, greeted the nurse anesthesiologist with a bear hug and questions about her dating life and her daughter.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 10, 2025
Austin Reaves, who dominated with 38 points on 12 for 15 shooting with eight rebounds and three assists, gave him a two-armed bear hug.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 29, 2025
Giant lineman JC Latham did not get the memo though as he gave Goodell a huge bear hug after being drafted by the Tennessee Titans.
From BBC ● Apr. 29, 2024
Instead of shaking it, he picked me up in a bear hug.
From "Code Talker: A Novel About the Navajo Marines of World War Two" by Joseph Bruchac
“We literally had to bear-hug the hull” to get the parts in place, said Mersai’s classmate, Henry Peters.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 20, 2022
On a third and eight, Young used a quick swim move to duck tackle Isaiah Wynn and bear-hug Newton, who released the ball just before the hit.
From Washington Post ● Aug. 12, 2021
Prospects can once again bear-hug a fully vaccinated Commissioner Roger Goodell.
From Washington Times ● Apr. 28, 2021
The Victorian received a bear-hug from batting partner Shane Watson, who hit 67 runs in 41 balls on his return to the side after being dropped for the previous match against Afghanistan.
From BBC ● Mar. 8, 2015
How we all shook hands and laughed as we came together, and how Mrs. Challenger kissed us all in her emotion, before she finally threw herself into the bear-hug of her husband.
From The Poison Belt by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Ohtani’s excitement for the game and his teammates—especially Yamamoto, whom he giddily bear-hugged in the celebration last night—does as much to lift the sport as his remarkable two-way talent.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2025
No idiosyncrasy is too singular for him to wrestle into submission – and over three seasons of the Syfy series, he’s bear-hugged a lot of them.
From Salon ● Mar. 28, 2024
“Now I can get emotional,” El Segundo manager Danny Boehle said tearing up after the game as his son, Quinn, who is on the team, bear-hugged him from behind.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2023
In Woods’s office at Iowa, he keeps a picture of the time Kittle bear-hugged him so hard on the sideline at the end of a victory that he lifted the coach off the ground.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 17, 2020
She reached out her arms and bear-hugged me and I hugged her back, and she whispered, “Okay, go.”
From "Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children" by Ransom Riggs
“What the company should be doing is focusing on bear-hugging their brand loyalists,” Siegel said.
From New York Times ● Feb. 1, 2023
She runs from him, and he gives chase, bear-hugging her from behind, sobbing, apologizing, his nose running, until they kiss.
From Slate ● Mar. 5, 2019
The theft drew global attention after police released surveillance video last month showing a man reaching into an armored truck, then tottering away while bear-hugging the pot.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 21, 2016
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp was bear-hugging and chest-bumping his triumphant players as Chelsea counterpart Antonio Conte was back in the dressing room contemplating a defeat about which he could have no complaints.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2016
I have seen pictures of the graduation day hung about his house, Kwang and his wife, May, smiling in the bright afternoon light, bear-hugging each other.
From "Native Speaker" by Chang-rae Lee
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