polar

7 definitions • 8 examples

relating to the North or South Pole or the areas around them:

the polar ice caps

polar explorers

Polar opposites are complete opposites:

The novel deals with the polar opposites of love and hate.

relating to poles (= the two points at which a straight line through the centre of a circle cuts the surface of a sphere):

It is best to use polar coordinates to locate points in the plane.

a straight line at an angle of 90 degrees to another line that passes through the centre of a circle and another given point:

Given a circle c with center O and a point P, there is a special line called the polar of P.

of or near the area around the most northern or most southern points of the earth:

the polar ice cap

a polar expedition

relating to either of the two ends of a magnet or two parts of a battery (= device that produces electricity) which have opposite charges:

fig. The play’s main characters are polar opposites (= They are completely opposite).

Polar also describes a substance whose molecules have opposite positive and negative poles