bipolar

[ bahy-poh-ler ]

/ baɪˈpoʊ lər /

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See synonyms for bipolar on Thesaurus.com

adjective

having two poles, as the earth.

of, relating to, or found at both polar regions.

characterized by opposite extremes, as two conflicting political philosophies.

Electronics. of or relating to a transistor that uses both positive and negative charge carriers.

Psychiatry. of, relating to, or having bipolar disorder: His wife is bipolar.

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THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

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In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

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Origin of bipolar

First recorded in 1800–10; bi-¹ + polar

OTHER WORDS FROM bipolar

bi·po·lar·i·ty, nounbi·po·lar·i·za·tion, noun

Words nearby bipolar

bipinnaria, bipinnate, biplane, BIPOC, bipod, bipolar, bipolar disorder, bipolar transistor, bippy, biprism, bipropellant

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use bipolar in a sentence

Though commentators like Ian Bremmer of the Eurasia Group warn of a “great decoupling” between the US and China, with dire consequences for technology, talk of a new bipolar Cold War is overblown.
Covid-19 and the geopolitics of American decline|Katie McLean|August 19, 2020|MIT Technology Review
By studying people’s phones, psychiatrists have been able to pick up the subtle signs that precede a bipolar episode.
Machines can spot mental health issues—if you hand over your personal data|Bobbie Johnson|August 13, 2020|MIT Technology Review
When a downswing in mood is coming, the GPS sensors in bipolar patients’ phones show that they tend to be less active.
Machines can spot mental health issues—if you hand over your personal data|Bobbie Johnson|August 13, 2020|MIT Technology Review
Probably the most advanced use of digital phenotyping is to predict the behaviors of people with bipolar disorder.
Machines can spot mental health issues—if you hand over your personal data|Bobbie Johnson|August 13, 2020|MIT Technology Review

My colleague at Emory, Frans de Waal, likes to call us the bipolar ape.
5 Psychology Terms You’re Probably Misusing (Ep. 334 Rebroadcast)|Stephen J. Dubner|January 9, 2020|Freakonomics
His family described him as being bipolar and having long suffered from mental troubles.
Synagogue Slay: When Cops Have to Kill|Michael Daly|December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In rambling posts, he called himself a loser, and wrote that he must be either bipolar or a psychopath.
School Shooters Love This Pickup Artist Website|Brandy Zadrozny|December 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Interestingly, the PLOS Medicine article noted, Otsuka makes the same claim for schizophrenia as it does for bipolar disorder.
Mother’s Little Anti-Psychotic Is Worth $6.9 Billion A Year|Jay Michaelson|November 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
As in, we have no idea why this medication seems to help people with bipolar disorder.
Mother’s Little Anti-Psychotic Is Worth $6.9 Billion A Year|Jay Michaelson|November 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A 33-year-old bipolar man walked into a store, lied about his mental health, and walked out with a deadly weapon.
Stop Me Before I Buy a Gun Again, Begs Bipolar Man|Eleanor Clift|June 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The design of Fig.10 has two poles in the field and two in the armature, and is what is known as the bipolar type.
Appletons' Popular Science Monthly, January 1900|Various
A bipolar field has a hypertonic pole or centre of concentration, and a hypotonic pole or centre of dilution.
The Mechanism of Life|Stphane Leduc
Some dynamos are bipolar, or have two poles, others are multipolar or have more than two.
Physics|Willis Eugene Tower
When two are used they are arranged on opposite sides of the armature, and form what is known as the bipolar machine.
The Progress of Invention in the Nineteenth Century.|Edward W. Byrn
Smears from the spleen and the right axillary gland showed immense numbers of bipolar-staining organisms.
Plague|Thomas Wright Jackson

British Dictionary definitions for bipolar

bipolar

/ (baɪˈpəʊlə) /

adjective

having two polesa bipolar dynamo; a bipolar neuron

relating to or found at the North and South Poles

having or characterized by two opposed opinions, natures, etc

(of a transistor) utilizing both majority and minority charge carriers

suffering from bipolar manic-depressive disorder

Derived forms of bipolar

bipolarity, noun

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 bipolar

bipolar

[ bī-pō′lər ]

Relating to or having two poles or charges.

Relating to a semiconductor device, such as a transistor, that exploits the electrical characteristics of contact between two substances, one with an inherent positive charge, the other with an inherent negative charge.

Relating to or involving both of the Earth's polar regions.

Relating to a neuron that has two processes or extremities.

Relating to bipolar disorder.

bipolar

Origin of bipolar

OTHER WORDS FROM bipolar

Words nearby bipolar

Words related to bipolar

How to use bipolar in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for bipolar

Derived forms of bipolar

Scientific definitions for bipolar