poly

¹

[ pol-ee ]

noun

, plural pol·ies.

1. Informal. polyester ( def 2 ):

   a blend of poly and cotton.

2. a fabric or garment made of polyester.

adjective

1. made of or containing polyester:

   a poly swimsuit.

poly

²

[ pol-ee ]

adjective

, Informal.

1. noting or relating to polyamory; polyamorous:

   They’re in a poly relationship.

2. identifying as polyamorous:

   They’re not monogamous, they’re poly.

poly-

³

1. a combining form with the meanings “much, many” and, in chemistry, “polymeric,” used in the formation of compound words:

   polyandrous; polyculture; polyethylene.

poly.

⁴

abbreviation for

1. polytechnic.

poly

¹

/ ˈpɒlɪ /

noun

1. See polytechnic
   informal.
   short for polytechnic

adjective

1. See polyester
   informal.
   short for polyester
2. See polythene
   informal.
   short for polythene

poly-

²

combining_form

1. more than one; many or much

   polyhedron

2. having an excessive or abnormal number or amount

   polycythaemia

poly–

1. A prefix meaning “many,” as in polygon, a figure having many sides. In chemistry, it is used to form the names of polymers by being attached to the name of the base unit of which the polymer is made, as in polysaccharide, a polymer made of repeating simple sugars (monosaccharides).

Word History and Origins

Origin of poly¹

By shortening

Origin of poly²

First recorded in 1990–95; shortening of polyamorous ( def )

Origin of poly³

< Greek, combining form representing polýs; akin to Old English fela many. See plus

Word History and Origins

Origin of poly¹

from Greek polus much, many; related to Old English fela many

Example Sentences

Cal Poly Pomona student Heather DeCosta described it as “kind of just boxing us in at all four sides of the street.”

From The Daily Beast

Merritt also litters the pages with his own favorite poly-lettered words.

From The Daily Beast

Someone has to be out about it so people can see that, yes, you can be poly and healthy and happy and in love.

From The Daily Beast

Poly, the model, said it was cold, but she truly loved the idea of being naked in nature.

From The Daily Beast

New Glossy: Condé Nast has released its first issue of Allure Russia, featuring Russian model Natasha Poly on its cover.

From The Daily Beast

Please take the dent out of my side, Poly, for I am more crippled than was the Soldier.

From Project Gutenberg

No one ever forgot the roly-poly pudding made without suet; synthetic rubber was its scientific name.

From Project Gutenberg

In the shape of pigs—fat, roly-poly and cute—they scampered off a little distance and sat down to think about their new condition.

From Project Gutenberg

He was a roly-poly little man; over seventy now but still healthy-looking, with an apple-cheeked, sunburned face.

From Project Gutenberg

Roast stuffed duckling with baked potatoes, string beans and brussels sprouts, jam roly-poly and coffee!

From Project Gutenberg

Words That Use poly-

What does poly- mean?

Poly– is a combining form with multiple meanings. In many terms, it is used like a prefix meaning “much, many.” In terms from chemistry, it denotes “polymeric,” meaning “of or relating to a polymer.” It is often used in a variety of scientific and technical terms, especially in biology.

Poly– comes from Greek polýs, meaning “many.” The Latin equivalent of polýs is multus, also meaning both “much” and “many,” which is the source of the combining form multi–. To learn more, check out our Words That Use article about multi-.

Examples of poly-

One example of a scientific term that features the form poly– is polytomy, “the act or process of dividing into more than three parts.”

The form poly– means “many,” as we have already seen. But what about the –tomy part of the word polytomy? The form –tomy means “cutting, incision,” from Greek –tomia. Polytomy literally translates to “many cuts.”

What are some words that use the combining form poly-?

• polyamory
• polyblast
• polydactyl (using the equivalent form of poly– in Greek)
• polyester
• polygon (using the equivalent form of poly– in Greek)
• polylingual
• polymath (using the equivalent form of poly– in Greek)
• polysemy (using the equivalent form of poly– in Greek)

What are some other forms that poly– may be commonly confused with?

• pleio-
• plio-
• pollini-

Break it down!

Lingual means “pertaining to languages.” With this in mind, what does polylingual mean?