unipolar

[ yoo-nuh-poh-ler ]

/ ˌyu nəˈpoʊ lər /

Save This Word!

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.

QUIZ

ARE YOU A TRUE BLUE CHAMPION OF THESE "BLUE" SYNONYMS?

We could talk until we're blue in the face about this quiz on words for the color "blue," but we think you should take the quiz and find out if you're a whiz at these colorful terms.

Question 1 of 8

Which of the following words describes “sky blue”?

navy

beryl

azure

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Meet Grammar Coach

Write or paste your essay, email, or story into Grammar Coach and get grammar help

Improve Your Writing

Meet Grammar CoachImprove Your Writing

Origin of unipolar

First recorded in 1805–15; uni- + polar

OTHER WORDS FROM unipolar

u·ni·po·lar·i·ty

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

Words nearby unipolar

unipennate, unipersonal, unipetalous, uniplanar, unipod, unipolar, unipolar lead, unipolar neuron, uniport, unipotent, unipotential

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

How to use unipolar in a sentence

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
In our post-unipolar moment, such a reassessment is long overdue.
Obama Defines the New Patriotism|Andrew J. Bacevich|April 13, 2011|DAILY BEAST
No more unipolar world, no more patronizing lectures from the Americans.
Russia's Olympic Choke Job|Michael Idov|February 26, 2010|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

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
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
If the connexion is only with one, the vesicle is called unipolar; if with two, bipolar; if with many, multipolar or stellate.
History of the Intellectual Development of Europe, Volume II (of 2)|John William Draper
Unipolar spots are very seldom observed without some indication of the characteristics of bipolar groups.
Astronomy|David Todd
The bipolar spot seems to be the dominant type, and the unipolar type a variant of it.
Astronomy|David Todd

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 forms of unipolar

unipolarity (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

Medical definitions for unipolar

unipolar

[ yōō′nĭ-pō′lər ]

Having a single fibrous process. Used of a neuron.

Situated at only one extremity of a cell.

Other words from unipolar

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