The property of having two opposite or contradictory tendencies, opinions, or aspects. In physics, the property of having distinct positive and negative poles.
From Medieval Latin 'polaris' meaning of the pole, derived from Greek 'polos' (axis). First used in the 17th century for magnetic properties, then extended to describe any system with opposing forces or characteristics.
Political polarity has measurably increased in many democracies, with voters clustering at ideological extremes rather than the center. This mirrors magnetic polarity - just as opposite magnetic poles attract, extreme political positions often define themselves in opposition to each other.
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