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cinnamon bear

cinnamon bear

8.1
A reddish-brown type of bear found mainly in western North America
  • noun
  • /ˈsɪnəˌmən bɛr/
  • US
translation icon : oso canela
  • The cinnamon bear is often mistaken for a different species due to its unique coloring.

Examples

  • Unlike the typical black bears, cinnamon bears have a distinctive reddish coat.

  • The cinnamon bears are known for their unique color.

  • We spotted a cinnamon bear near the river while hiking in Montana.

  • I saw a cinnamon bear in the national park.

  • While hiking in the forest, we spotted a beautiful cinnamon bear rummaging through the fallen leaves.

  • The wildlife photographer captured stunning images of the cinnamon bear as it strolled along the riverbank.

  • During our trip to Yellowstone, we were lucky enough to see a cinnamon bear foraging for food in the early morning light.

How Brown

brown bear
6 1.9
cinnamon bear
  • US
8.1

Surface Forms

cinnamon bear singular

Morphology

cinnamon + bear

This is compositionally built from 'cinnamon' (a reddish-brown spice/color) + 'bear', so a learner who knows both words can readily infer it denotes a bear with cinnamon-colored fur. The color+noun compound is a regular, cross-linguistic pattern and thus should be immediately understandable to a B1 learner.

Etymology

Cinnamon bear gets its name from the animal's reddish-brown fur that looks like the spice cinnamon, so the name refers to a kind of bear with that 'reddish-brown' color.