I. pole 1 W3 /pəʊl $ poʊl/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[ Sense 1: Language: Old English ; Origin: pal , from Latin palus ; ⇨ ↑ pale 3 ]
[ Sense 2-5: Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: Latin ; Origin: polus , from Greek polos ]
1 . STICK/POST a long stick or post usually made of wood or metal, often set upright in the ground to support something:
a telephone pole
2 . the most northern or most southern point on a ↑ planet , especially the Earth:
the distance from pole to equator
the North/South Pole
Amundsen’s expedition was the first to reach the South Pole.
3 . be poles apart two people or things that are poles apart are as different from each other as it is possible to be:
Both are brilliant pianists, though they’re poles apart in style.
4 . OPPOSITE IDEAS/BELIEFS one of two situations, ideas, or opinions that are the complete opposite of each other
at one pole/at opposite poles
We have enormous wealth at one pole, and poverty and misery at the other.
Washington and Beijing are at opposite poles (=think in two completely different ways) on this issue.
5 . ELECTRICAL
a) one of two points at the ends of a ↑ magnet where its power is the strongest
b) one of the two points at which wires can be attached to a ↑ battery in order to use its electricity
II. pole 2 BrE AmE verb [intransitive and transitive] British English
to push a boat along in the water using a pole