熊市(bear market)指价格正在下跌或预期下跌的市场，又称“空头市场”。价格变化的总趋势是不断走低，特征是大跌小涨。该市场总体运行趋势是向下的，虽有反弹，但一波比一波低，绝大多数人是亏损的，虽偶有机会但转瞬即逝，不易捕捉，操作困难。中国股市没有做空机制，投资人在空头市场中应尽量避免再次进场，持币观望。融资融券、股指期货、商品期货等都有做空机制，可以进行做空来获利。以下为其英文释义，可更直观地理解其含义：

A bear market is a general decline in the stock market over a period of time. It includes a transition from high investor optimism to widespread investor fear and pessimism. One generally accepted measure of a bear market is a price decline of 20% or more over at least a two-month period. A smaller decline of 10 to 20% is considered a correction.

例句1

It is beginning to look as if we are in the middle of another of those great phases, what commentators call a secular, as opposed to a cyclical, bear market.

现在的境况开始让人觉得我们似乎处在又一个重大的历史阶段之中，相对于周期性的熊市，评论家们把这个阶段称为长期性熊市。

例句2

After a nasty bear market, prices are now close to their 2000 peaks.

在度过一个糟糕的熊市后，股价几乎攀升到2000年的最高点。

与其相对的为多头市场（bull market）又称牛市，指价格长期呈上涨趋势的证券市场。价格变化的总趋势是不断走高，特征是大涨小跌。多头市场总体运行趋势是向上的，虽有下跌，但一波比一波高。买入者多于卖出者、求大于供，人气不断汇集，投资人追高意愿强烈，新开户的人数不断增加，新资金源源不断涌入。投资人在多头市场中应尽量避免频繁操作，持股待涨。以下为相关例句：

例句1

Since the start of the global bull market in 2003 emerging Asian shares have gained 210% in dollar terms, compared with an average of 440% in Latin America.

自从2003年全球牛市开始以来，新兴亚洲市场的股票以美元计增加了210%，而同期拉丁美洲的股票平均增加了440%。

例句2

A savvy market watcher, who has been correctly bearish on stocks, says the next bull market will likely start soon — and it should be a big one.

一位曾经准确预测熊市的精明的市场观察家表示：下一轮牛市即将开始，并且它将是一个更大的牛市。