drop bear
- noun
- Australian
:
oso caído
- I was warned to wear a hat in the bush, just in case a drop bear was nearby.
Examples
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Some Australians love to tell visitors wild stories about the dangerous drop bear.
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In Australia, the drop bear is often used to playfully scare visitors exploring the wilderness.
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The legend of the drop bear is a popular joke among locals.
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The legend of the drop bear is popular among tourists.
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Watch out for the drop bear when you hike in Australia!
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Many tourists are amused by the stories of the deadly drop bear that can attack unsuspecting hikers.
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As we walked through the forest, our guide joked about how a drop bear might drop from the trees.
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound is partially compositional: a learner who knows 'drop' and 'bear' can infer a creature or bear that drops (e.g., from trees), so the basic image is derivable from the parts. However, the crucial information that this is a mythical/folk‑joke entity used to scare or amuse tourists is culturally specific and not predictable from the constituents, so the expression is only partially transparent.
Etymology
Drop bear The name drop bear comes from a joking image of a large bear that seems to drop from trees onto people below. One popular story says Australians made it up to 'scare' or 'amuse' tourists, so today the term refers to a made-up animal used as a joke.
