bear up
(redirected from bear it up)bear up
1. To physically hold or prop someone or something up. In this usage, a noun or pronoun can be used between "bear" and "up." This rod is too flimsy to bear up the weight of all those clothes. A: "How did the swing break?" B: "I guess it couldn't bear up four people at once." That plant is going to keep falling over until you get a stake or something to bear it up.
2. To endure or persevere through challenges or emotional distress. Mandy's been OK today, but I doubt she'll bear up well at the funeral. A: "She does own a hotel, so I don't know how she will bear up." B: "I know, there certainly are a lot of issues affecting the hospitality industry right now." Kids are resilient, so I just know your son will bear up well, even in the face of such tragedy.
3. To help one to endure or persevere through emotional distress. In this usage, a noun or pronoun can be used between "bear" and "up." The presence of Mandy's father really bore her up at the funeral. Therapy has definitely helped bear me up during this hard time. I am going through a divorce, but, luckily, I'm from a close-knit family and can always count on my parents and siblings to bear me up.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
bear someone or something up
to hold someone or something up; to support someone or something. Will this bench bear me up? This bench is so sturdy it would bear up an elephant.
bear someone up*
to sustain or encourage someone. Your encouragement bore me up through a very hard time. I will bear up the widow through the funeral service as well as I can.
bear up (under something)
1. Lit. to hold up under something; to sustain the weight of something. How is the new beam bearing up under the weight of the floor? It isn't bearing up. It broke.
2. Fig. [for someone] to remain brave under a mental or emotional burden. Jill did not bear up well under problems with her family. Jill bore up quite well amid serious difficulties.
bear up
(under something)1. Lit. to hold up under something; to sustain the weight of something. How is the new beam bearing up under the weight of the floor? It isn't bearing up. It broke.
2. Fig. [for someone] to remain brave under a mental or emotional burden. Jill did not bear up well under problems with her family. Jill bore up quite well amid serious difficulties.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
bear up
Endure, face a hardship, as in Jane found it hard to bear up under the strain of her father's illness. This term is also used as an imperative, as in Bear up-the trip's almost over. [c. 1600]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
bear up
v.
To withstand stress, difficulty, or attrition: The patient bore up well during the long illness. The president had a hard time bearing up against his critics.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Phrasal Verbs. Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.