bipolar

Etymology

It is formed from English bi- (“two”) + polar.^{[2][3][4][5][6]} The adjective polar comes from French polaire or directly from Medieval Latin polāris (“of the poles”), from Latin polus (“end of an axis”).^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Having two poles or opposite ends: 1810 in the OED and Etymonline, which records it first in a figurative sense, "of double aspect".^[2][3] Merriam-Webster dates the sense "having two poles" to 1806,^[5] and Dictionary.com places the word in 1800–10.^[6]

Semantic evolution

In the 19th century the word was applied to nerve cells with two processes, one at each pole, by 1859,^[3][2][4] and to living things found in both polar regions from 1896.^[2][5] In electronics a bipolar transistor uses both electrons and holes as charge carriers.^[7][5] The psychiatric sense, for an illness with both manic and depressive episodes, dates from the mid 20th century;^[4] Etymonline says that it is said to have begun with the German psychiatrist Karl Leonhard in 1957, for what had been called manic-depressive psychosis.^[3] Merriam-Webster dates bipolar disorder to 1972 and bipolar affective disorder to 1978,^[5] and Etymonline notes that bipolar disorder appeared in DSM-III (1980) and that the term became popular in the early 1990s.^[3] The noun, a person with bipolar disorder, is recorded from 1984.^[5] The general sense of having two opposed natures or views is also current.^[7][5]

Timeline

• 1806 – having two poles.^[5]
• 1810 – figurative, of double aspect.^[3][2]
• 1859 – of nerve cells, having two processes.^[3]
• 1896 – found in both polar regions.^[2]
• 1957 – psychiatric use, with Karl Leonhard.^[3]
• 1972 – bipolar disorder.^[5]
• 1984 – noun, a person with bipolar disorder.^[5]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Having or using two poles: a bipolar electrode.^[7][5][2]
2. Of a neuron: having two processes, one at each end of the cell body.^[5][2][4]
3. Relating to or found in both polar regions.^[7][5][2]
4. Having two opposed natures, opinions or forces.^[7][5]
5. Having or relating to bipolar disorder, with episodes of mania and depression.^[7][5][4]
6. Of a transistor: using both electrons and holes as charge carriers.^[7][5]

Noun

1. (medicine) A person who has bipolar disorder.^[5]

Word family

• bipolarity
• bipolarization

Related words

• multipolar
• nonpolar
• polar
• unipolar
• pole

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b c d e Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
7. ^ a b c d e f g Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins