polarize
to cause polarization in.
to divide into sharply opposing factions, political groups, etc.: The controversy has polarized voters into proabortion and antiabortion groups.
to give polarity to.
to become polarized.
Origin of polarize
1- Also especially British, po·lar·ise .
Other words from polarize
- po·lar·iz·a·ble [poh-luh-rahy-zuh-buhl], /ˌpoʊ ləˈraɪ zə bəl/, adjective
- po·lar·iz·a·bil·i·ty [poh-luh-rahy-zuh-bil-i-tee], /ˌpoʊ ləˌraɪ zəˈbɪl ɪ ti/, noun
- de·po·lar·ize, verb (used with object), de·po·lar·ized, de·po·lar·iz·ing.
- non·po·lar·iz·a·ble, adjective
- re·po·lar·ize, verb (used with object), re·po·lar·ized, re·po·lar·iz·ing.
Words Nearby polarize
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use polarize in a sentence
Ideas emerge, they become polarizing by virtue of being jammed into a zero-sum political system, and then they typically fail.
They feared their brands sitting alongside polarizing content.
Deep Dive: How media buying execs are adapting to the challenges and changes of 2020 and beyond | jim cooper | September 28, 2020 | DigidayAlthough in a sign of just how conservative and polarized the court has already become, she is not that far ahead of the other liberal justices still on the court.
How A Conservative 6-3 Majority Would Reshape The Supreme Court | Amelia Thomson-DeVeaux (Amelia.Thomson-DeVeaux@abc.com) | September 28, 2020 | FiveThirtyEightFaith in the Electoral College is already shaky because of the possibility of a popular vote-electoral vote split like in 2000 and 2016, and worse yet, support for the Electoral College is increasingly polarized by party.
What If Trump Loses And Won’t Leave? | Geoffrey Skelley (geoffrey.skelley@abc.com) | September 14, 2020 | FiveThirtyEight“The bigger the brand and the more people they appeal to, the more likely it is going to be polarizing to their audience,” said one agency exec of why some brands would rather not address the coronavirus directly in ads any longer.
‘Implicitly rather than explicitly’: Advertisers no longer want to discuss the coronavirus | Kristina Monllos | July 20, 2020 | Digiday
The world will re-polarize while money flows into Swiss bank accounts.
Not the bridge-burning efforts of Butler and her BDS comrades who polarize an already divided Middle East.
They say rape-y things Rick Ross is hardly the first rapper to polarize with lyrics about rape.
11 Ways Rappers Are Just Like Right-Wing Radio Hosts | Kevin Fallon | March 29, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTIf the president -- any president -- inserts himself into the gun debate, he will inevitably polarize it.
Second, I think it might polarize the country even more than it is now.
A dry cell, Leclanché, or other open-circuit cell would not be at all suitable for a telegraph line, as it would soon polarize.
How Two Boys Made Their Own Electrical Apparatus | Thomas M. (Thomas Matthew) St. JohnThey are also costly, since they do not last long and cannot be worked too hard unless they polarize.
Boys' Book of Model Boats | Raymond Francis YatesThey impose themselves on men apart from reason and have the power to polarize men's thoughts and feelings in one direction.
Introduction to the Science of Sociology | Robert E. ParkIt may be said to polarize the idea, so often presented in his poetry, that doubt is a condition of the vitality of faith.
Introduction to Robert Browning | Hiram CorsonThese must have plenty of time to rest, as they polarize when the circuit is closed for a long time.
Things a Boy Should Know About Electricity | Thomas M. (Thomas Matthew) St. John
British Dictionary definitions for polarize
polarise
/ (ˈpəʊləˌraɪz) /
to acquire or cause to acquire polarity
to acquire or cause to acquire polarization: to polarize light
to cause people to adopt extreme opposing positions: to polarize opinion
Derived forms of polarize
- polarizable or polarisable, adjective
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for polarize
[ pō′lə-rīz′ ]
To separate or accumulate positive and negative electric charges in two distinct regions. Polarized objects have an electric dipole moment and will undergo torque when placed in an external electric field.
To magnetize a substance so that it has the properties of a magnetic dipole, such as having a north and south pole.
To cause the electrical and magnetic fields associated with electromagnetic waves, especially light, to vibrate in a particular direction or path. The transverse electric and magnetic waves always vibrate at right angles to each other, but in ordinary unpolarized light sources, the direction of polarization of each wave is randomly distributed. Light can be polarized by reflection, and by passing through certain materials. See more at polarization.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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