5 Minute Grammar Lesson – Bare with me? or Bear with me?

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Welcome back to another 5 Minute Grammar Lesson! This week’s topic is BARE with me or BEAR with me. Which one is correct and what do they mean, anyway? bear with me or bare with me

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Bare with me? or Bear with me?

A while back I wanted to write in a post, “Please bare with me…” But before I posted it, I decided I’d better look up the correct idiom. And it’s a good thing I did. Proofreading is important, y’all. And here’s why.

BARE with me?

Boy, am I glad I did! Because, “Bare with me” means to get naked with me. That’s not the intended meaning I had in mind at all because this isn’t that kind of blog. 😉 The verb BARE in this case means to uncover or reveal.

Bear with me?

The proper usage is BEAR with me. It means to hang on a minute while I go off on a tangent you probably don’t care anything about. The verb BEAR means to tolerate or be patient. I was initially confused by the meaning of the noun BEAR – I mean, what does a fuzzy mammal have to do with anyone being patient with me. I conveniently forgot that BEAR is also a verb…

Bear with me or bare with me - 5 Minute

And that’s it! That’s all there is to the pressing question, should you use BEAR with me or BARE with me. I know you were all dying to know. 😀

Want more grammar posts?

Bias or Biased?

Do to or Due to?

Broke or Broken?

Who’s or WHOSE?

How to make the word PEOPLE possessive

And if you’re looking for helpful grammar resources, here are my top picks:

Grammarly – Instantly fix over 250 types of errors with this free web-based grammar checker!

Strunk & White Elements of Style

The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation 

Eats, Shoots, and Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation 

The Grammar Girl’s Quick & Dirty Tips for Better Writing

Check back next Sunday for another quick grammar lesson! And if you’d like to get weekly grammar tips delivered straight to your inbox, please subscribe to my once a week newsletter. I promise I won’t spam you. 🙂

About Michelle Marine

Michelle Marine is the author of How to Raise Chickens for Meat, a long-time green-living enthusiast, and rural Iowa mom of four. She empowers families to grow and eat seasonal, local foods; to reduce their ecological footprint; and to come together through impactful travel.

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6 Comments

  1. I would have had to look that one up as well. I have an English teacher friend who gives grammar lessons on Facebook too. 🙂

  2. I’m happy to bear with you, but don’t know you well enough to bare with you. 🙂 Whew! Glad we’re both on the same paige (purposeful pun).