unipolar

[ yoo-nuh-poh-ler ]

/ ˌyu nəˈpoʊ lər /

adjective

Also homopolar. Physics. having or pertaining to a single magnetic or electric pole.

Anatomy. of or relating to a nerve cell in spinal and cranial ganglia in which the incoming and outgoing processes fuse outside the cell body.

Nearby words

Origin of unipolar

First recorded in 1805–15; uni- + polar

Related formsu·ni·po·lar·i·ty

[yoo-nuh-poh-lar-i-tee, -puh-] /ˌyu nə poʊˈlær ɪ ti, -pə-/, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for unipolar

But the idea that the United States must maintain its hegemonic status in a unipolar world—on the right, that has staying power.
Dick Cheney’s Awfulness Is Here to Stay|Michael Tomasky|July 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The “unipolar moment” that might have described America when the Berlin Wall fell down is long over.
We're Handling China All Wrong|Jeffrey E. Garten|February 17, 2010|DAILY BEAST
Burger showed that all ganglion cells are unipolar, without membranes.
Journal of Entomology and Zoology, September 1917|Various
When the blastula is oval and free-swimming the inner mass is formed by unipolar immigration from the hinder pole.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 14, Slice 2|Various

But unipolar symmetry with diverging outgrowths leads us to the next category which may be called radial symmetry.
The Contemporary Review, Volume 36, October 1879|Various
The bipolar spot seems to be the dominant type, and the unipolar type a variant of it.
Astronomy|David Todd
The next morphological category may be spoken of as unipolar symmetry.
The Contemporary Review, Volume 36, October 1879|Various

British Dictionary definitions for unipolar

unipolar

/ (ˌjuːnɪˈpəʊlə) /

adjective

of, concerned with, or having a single magnetic or electric pole

(of a nerve cell) having a single process

(of a transistor) utilizing charge carriers of one polarity only, as in a field-effect transistor

(of nervous depression) occurring without accompanying bouts of mania

dominated by one superpower, esp the United StatesSee bipolar

Derived Formsunipolarity (ˌjuːnɪpəʊˈlærɪtɪ), 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

Word Origin and History for unipolar

unipolar

adj.

1812, from uni- + polar.

Medicine definitions for unipolar

unipolar

[ yōō′nĭ-pō′lər ]

n.

Having a single fibrous process. Used of a neuron.

Situated at only one extremity of a cell.

Related formsu′ni•po•lar′i•ty (-pō-lăr′ĭ-tē, -pə-) n.