Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

poke the bear

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.57 in modern English

Syllables: poke the bear
IPA

22

Scrabble Score

11

Letters

1

Syllables

9

Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To deliberately aggravate somebody, especially somebody in a position of power or authority.

American usage

verb

To deliberately anger Russia or the Russian government.

Slang

Example Sentences

"Throughout my training I witnessed several doctors run out of town because their honesty and outspokenness began to poke the bear."
"His advice to Zuckerberg, the Times later reported, was “Don’t poke the bear”—avoid incurring the wrath of Trump and his supporters."

Etymology

The second sense refers to the use of bears to represent Russia, as a shortening of the idiom "poke the Russian bear" (to anger or threaten Russia and start a war with Russia).

Usage

American usage
Slang

Inflected Forms

pokes the bear (present, singular) poking the bear (participle, present) poked the bear (participle, past) poked the bear (past)

Phrases

ruffle some feathers when you mess with the bull, you get the horns

Frequently Paired Words

bearbaiting ruffle some feathers when you mess with the bull, you get the horns

Questions

What does poke the bear mean?: To deliberately aggravate somebody, especially somebody in a position of power or authority.
Where does poke the bear come from?: The second sense refers to the use of bears to represent Russia, as a shortening of the idiom "poke the Russian bear" (to anger or threaten Russia and start a war with Russia).

How to pronounce poke the bear

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