loaded for bear
3
9.2
- idiom
- Informal
:
preparado para la batalla
- She walked into the meeting loaded for bear, armed with facts and figures to support her argument.
- came loaded for bear
- going loaded for bear
Examples
-
Otis spins around toward Mickey, loaded for bear, and points his finger at him threateningly.
Fiction book (1994) -
She came loaded for bear!
-
We are on the move and loaded for bear.
-
Yeah, well, a minute ago, you were loaded for bear.
-
These guys are loaded for bear.
-
Usually, I have done some reading the previous night and come to work loaded for bear.
Blog text (5) -
Caroline heads inside, loaded for bear.
Fiction book (1993) -
More like Romney showed up loaded for bear and Obama showed up with a cap gun.
Blog text (11) -
But West Virginia isn't the only team still offensively loaded for bear.
Blog text (32) -
The crowd had come loaded for bear, and while many commenters eased off the trigger in appreciation of Sundberg's comments, most fired away.
Blog text (4)
Synonyms
29
4.3
Prepared to begin an activity such as a game or meeting
9
5.6
Having many weapons or supplies for protection
2
4.4
Willing and ready to try something difficult
1
2.3
The state of being prepared to act immediately
Antonyms
How Prepared
Surface Forms
Morphology
Although the literal words suggest being 'loaded' (armed) 'for' a 'bear' (the animal), the idiomatic meaning 'well-prepared to face an intense challenge' is not directly derivable from those constituents. The expression is culture-specific and metaphorical (likely from hunting/arming imagery), so a B1 learner who knows the individual words would not reliably infer the idiomatic sense without prior exposure.
Etymology
The idiom loaded for bear may come from old hunting scenes, where a hunter was fully loaded with a gun and ready to face a dangerous bear. So the phrase now means being 'well-prepared' and ready for a hard or dangerous challenge.