average bear
2
7.2
- noun
- Informal
:
persona promedio
- She is just an average bear, not particularly skilled in any one thing.
- smarter than the average bear
But this guy is different than your average bear.
- But this guy is different than your average bear.
Examples
-
Unlike the average bear, he has a unique talent for music.
-
I am smarter than the average bear.
Blog text (28) -
But I probably do pay more attention to these issues than the average bear, and the freedom to not pay attention is follow-up comments by email.
Blog text (30) -
Guys like Petraeus think they're smarter than the average bear.
Blog text (31) -
I don't parade around as though I know a lot; I do, however, ask a lot of questions, and I find those answers. I don't know if I'm your snowflake you're looking for, but remember I'm not your average bear, and I don't particularly like the snow.
Blog text (25) -
And missed by your self-selecting readership (at least by those who posted; maybe those who got your point didn't trouble to write, as I didn't) who are generally smarter than your average bear (or caveman).
Blog text (3) -
Being an average bear means you have the same chance of success as everyone else.
Synonyms
15
1.8
A regular man with no special skills or fame
10
2.5
A regular man who stands for the average person
1
5.2
A typical person with no special skills or fame
A name people use for an ordinary, typical man
Antonyms
- Specialized
27
4.8
A child whose thinking or physical ability is much different from most children
How Typical
- Informal
2
7.2
843
1.0
- Informal
8
6.1
- Specialized
27
4.8
Surface Forms
Morphology
The adjective 'average' clearly conveys 'ordinary' but 'bear' is literally an animal; the expression relies on a metaphorical mapping from animal to person. A B1 learner who knows both words might guess something like 'an ordinary bear' but would not reliably infer the conventional sense 'an ordinary person' without exposure, so the relation is partially transparent but requires figurative knowledge.
Etymology
Average bear may come from a simple image: imagine a plain, common bear rather than a big, strong, or famous one. That's why calling someone an average bear (with average showing 'not special') means 'an ordinary person'.