Meaning & use
poles
Last updated
“poles” is a form of “Pole”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
nounplural
people from Poland, or people of Polish origin
Grammar: Always capitalized and used as a plural noun: 'The Poles are proud of their history.'
Patterns
- the Poles
- many Poles
- Poles living abroad
Many Poles moved to the UK after 2004.
The Poles have a rich tradition of folk music.
She met several Poles at the international conference.
nounplural
long, thin, usually rounded pieces of wood, metal, or other material
Grammar: This is the plural of 'pole' (not capitalized): a pole, two poles.
Patterns
- wooden poles
- fishing poles
- telephone poles
The tent is held up by two metal poles.
He used long poles to reach the fruit on the tree.
The old telephone poles were replaced with new ones.
nounpluraltechnical
the two opposite ends of a magnet, battery, or sphere
Grammar: Often used with 'north' and 'south': the north and south poles.
Patterns
- north and south poles
- magnetic poles
- the poles of a battery
The north and south poles of a magnet attract each other.
Check the plus and minus poles on the battery.
Scientists study the Earth's magnetic poles.
Word forms
| singular | Pole |
|---|
Common combinations
- the Polish people
- The Polish people have a long history of resilience.
- Poles abroad
- Poles abroad often send money home to their families.
- north and south poles
- A compass needle points toward the north and south poles.
- wooden poles
- The fence was made of wooden poles.
Synonyms and how they differ
- Polish people
- A more formal way to refer to the same group; 'Poles' is shorter and common in news.
Word family
Commonly confused: poles or poles?
poles vs poles
Without a capital letter, 'poles' means long thin sticks or the ends of a magnet. With a capital P, 'Poles' means people from Poland.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'Poles' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Poles' with a capital P refers to people from Poland, so 'The Poles are known for their hearty cuisine' is correct. 'Many poles' should be capitalized if it means people, 'two Poles' is wrong because you don't buy people, and 'Poles of the Earth' should be lowercase 'poles'.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “poles”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.