Answer: A bear is a speculator who expects the prices of securities to fall.
A bear sells securities he may not even own at present (short selling), expecting to buy them back later at a lower price and deliver them, earning the difference as profit. He is called a bear because, like the animal that strikes downwards with its paw, he tries to push prices down. A market in which prices are falling is called a bearish market. For example, a bear sells 100 shares at ₹ 500 hoping to buy them back at ₹ 450 before settlement.