A large brown bear (Ursus arctos) found in North America, characterized by grizzled gray-tipped fur. Also used as an adjective meaning gray or streaked with gray.
From 'grizzled,' meaning gray or streaked with gray hair, from Old French 'grisel' (grayish). The bear got this name from early American explorers who noticed the gray-tipped guard hairs that give its fur a distinctive appearance. First recorded in reference to bears in the early 1800s.
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