A fierce, aggressive animal (often applied to the binturong, a real Southeast Asian mammal), or figuratively, a person with a tough, combative personality.
From Old English 'bera' (bear) and 'cat'. The compound emphasizes dangerous, aggressive qualities by combining two formidable predators, though the binturong (the actual animal) is unrelated to either.
The binturong was called a 'bearcat' by European traders who'd never seen anything like it—when you don't know what something is, you smash together the names of fierce things you do know!
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