Definition of "polarization" []

• The production or condition of polarity, as: (noun)
• A process or state in which rays of light exhibit different properties in different directions, especially the state in which all the vibration takes place in one plane. (noun)
• The partial or complete polar separation of positive and negative electric charge in a nuclear, atomic, molecular, or chemical system. (noun)
• A concentration, as of groups, forces, or interests, about two conflicting or contrasting positions. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "KING: You talk about what you call the polarization back in your district."
• "This polarization is not likely to dissipate in the near future."
• "The Politics of polarization is all they have left."