English terms dictionary. 2015.
polarize — UK US (UK also polarise) /ˈpəʊləraɪz/ verb [T] ► to cause people or opinions to be divided into two opposing groups: »The subject of interest rates continues to polarize the business community … Financial and business terms
Polarize — Po lar*ize, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Polarized}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Polarizing}.] [Cf. F. polariser.] To communicate polarity to. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
polarize — verb break up into opposing factions, contrapose, contrast, oppose, pit against one another, put in opposition Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 … Law dictionary
polarize — (v.) 1811, from Fr. polariser, coined by French physicist Étienne Louis Malus (1775 1812) as a term in optics. Transferred sense of to accentuate a division in a group or system is first recorded 1949 in Arthur Koestler. Related: Polarized;… … Etymology dictionary
polarize — (Amer.) po·lar·ize || pəʊlÉ™raɪz v. separate into opposing groups, contrapose; give polarity to something, cause an item to have unequally distributed characteristics (also polarise) … English contemporary dictionary
polarize — [pō′lə rīz΄] vt. polarized, polarizing [Fr polariser < polaire < ML polaris, POLAR] 1. to give polarity to; produce polarization in 2. to cause to divide into two opposing groups, as through a disagreement over policy vi. to acquire… … English World dictionary
polarize — v. (D; intr., tr.) to polarize into (polarized into opposing camps) * * * [ pəʊləraɪz] (D; intr., tr.) to polarize into (polarized into opposing camps) … Combinatory dictionary
polarize — UK [ˈpəʊləraɪz] / US [ˈpoʊləˌraɪz] verb [intransitive/transitive] Word forms polarize : present tense I/you/we/they polarize he/she/it polarizes present participle polarizing past tense polarized past participle polarized to form two very… … English dictionary
polarize — verb Polarize is used with these nouns as the object: ↑country, ↑society … Collocations dictionary
polarize — I (New American Roget s College Thesaurus) v. orient, align, concentrate, gather; split, separate, dichotomize, oppose. See opposition. II (Roget s 3 Superthesaurus) (VOCABULARY WORD) v. [POH luh RIZE] to take opposing sides. Certain issues have… … English dictionary for students
