poly

¹

[ pol-ee ]

noun

, plural pol·ies.

1. Informal. polyester ( def 2 ):

   a blend of poly and cotton.

2. a fabric or garment made of polyester.

adjective

1. made of or containing polyester:

   a poly swimsuit.

poly

²

[ pol-ee ]

adjective

, Informal.

1. noting or relating to polyamory; polyamorous:

   They’re in a poly relationship.

2. identifying as polyamorous:

   They’re not monogamous, they’re poly.

poly-

³

1. a combining form with the meanings “much, many” and, in chemistry, “polymeric,” used in the formation of compound words:

   polyandrous; polyculture; polyethylene.

poly.

⁴

abbreviation for

1. polytechnic.

poly

¹

/ ˈpɒlɪ /

noun

1. informal.
   short for polytechnic

adjective

1. informal.
   short for polyester
2. informal.
   short for polythene

poly-

²

combining_form

1. more than one; many or much

   polyhedron

2. having an excessive or abnormal number or amount

   polycythaemia

poly–

1. A prefix meaning “many,” as in polygon, a figure having many sides. In chemistry, it is used to form the names of polymers by being attached to the name of the base unit of which the polymer is made, as in polysaccharide, a polymer made of repeating simple sugars (monosaccharides).

Word History and Origins

Origin of poly¹

By shortening

Origin of poly²

First recorded in 1990–95; shortening of polyamorous ( def )

Origin of poly³

< Greek, combining form representing polýs; akin to Old English fela many. See plus

Word History and Origins

Origin of poly¹

from Greek polus much, many; related to Old English fela many

Example Sentences

The biggest game of all came in 2001 when Long Beach Poly faced Concord De La Salle in what was dubbed the game of the century.

From Los Angeles Times

One of the greatest individual performances was turned in by Matt Grootegoed of Mater Dei against Long Beach Poly in 1998.

From Los Angeles Times

Only a handful of colleges in Central and Northern California, including UC Merced and Cal Poly Humboldt, were included.

From Los Angeles Times

Before Dr. John Dahlem, the Southern Section’s unofficial historian, passed last week at the age of 81, he sent me several pages of my past life at Sun Valley Poly, Cal State Northridge and elsewhere.

From Los Angeles Times

Mountain lions in greater Los Angeles are proactively shifting their activity to avoid interacting with cyclists, hikers, joggers and other recreationists, finds a study from the University of California, Davis, Cal Poly Pomona and the National Park Service.

From Science Daily

Words That Use poly-

What does poly- mean?

Poly– is a combining form with multiple meanings. In many terms, it is used like a prefix meaning “much, many.” In terms from chemistry, it denotes “polymeric,” meaning “of or relating to a polymer.” It is often used in a variety of scientific and technical terms, especially in biology.

Poly– comes from Greek polýs, meaning “many.” The Latin equivalent of polýs is multus, also meaning both “much” and “many,” which is the source of the combining form multi–. To learn more, check out our Words That Use article about multi-.

Examples of poly-

One example of a scientific term that features the form poly– is polytomy, “the act or process of dividing into more than three parts.”

The form poly– means “many,” as we have already seen. But what about the –tomy part of the word polytomy? The form –tomy means “cutting, incision,” from Greek –tomia. Polytomy literally translates to “many cuts.”

What are some words that use the combining form poly-?

• polyamory
• polyblast
• polydactyl (using the equivalent form of poly– in Greek)
• polyester
• polygon (using the equivalent form of poly– in Greek)
• polylingual
• polymath (using the equivalent form of poly– in Greek)
• polysemy (using the equivalent form of poly– in Greek)

What are some other forms that poly– may be commonly confused with?

• pleio-
• plio-
• pollini-

Break it down!

Lingual means “pertaining to languages.” With this in mind, what does polylingual mean?