bear market

American  

[bair mahr-kit] / ˈbɛər ˈmɑr kɪt /

noun

Stock Exchange.

1. a financial market characterized by investment prices that are falling or that are forecast to fall.

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bear market Cultural  

1. A market, especially a stock market, characterized by falling prices; the opposite of a bull market.

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Etymology

Origin of bear market

First recorded in 1870–75

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bear market

With chip stocks now tumbling into a bear market, two big Wall Street were divided over whether a big buy-the-dip moment for investors had arrived.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 20, 2026

Still, she reckons the recent decline is more likely a temporary repricing process, rather than the beginning of a prolonged bear market for the yellow metal.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026

See: Semiconductor stocks are on the verge of a bear market.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 19, 2026

A bear market is defined by a drop of 20% or more from a recent peak.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026

Instead of the price of wheat going up, as it should have done at this season of the year, wheat has been forced down and down by a strong bear market.

From The Automobile Girls at Chicago or, Winning Out Against Heavy Odds by Crane, Laura Dent