polemic

English

Alternative forms

• polemick (obsolete)

Etymology

From French polémique, from Ancient Greek πολεμικός (polemikós, “of war”), from πόλεμος (pólemos, “war”)

Pronunciation

• IPA: /pʌˈlɛmɪk/

• Audio (US)

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• Rhymes: -ɛmɪk

Noun

polemic (plural polemics)

1. A person who writes in support of one opinion, doctrine, or system, in opposition to another; one skilled in polemics; a controversialist; a disputant.
2. An argument or controversy.
3. A strong verbal or written attack on someone or something.

Synonyms

• controversialist
• disputant

Derived terms

• polemical

Translations

argument or controversy

Afrikaans: polemiek (af) Belarusian: палеміка (be) (palemika) f. Czech: polemika (cs) f. Danish: polemik (da) c. Finnish: polemiikki (fi) French: polémique (fr) f. German: Polemik (de) Icelandic: (book or pamphlet of polemic) deilurit (is) n.

Italian: polemica (it) f. Macedonian: полемика (mk) (polemika) f. Polish: polemika (pl) f. Russian: полемика (ru) (polemika) f. Spanish: polémica (es) f. Swedish: polemik (sv) Turkish: polemik (tr) Ukrainian: полеміка (uk) (polemika) f.

Adjective

polemic (comparative more polemic, superlative most polemic)

1. Having the characteristics of a polemic.

Synonyms

• polemical

Translations

having the characteristics of a polemic

Esperanto: polemika (eo) Finnish: poleeminen (fi) French: polémique (fr) m. and f. German: polemisch (de)

Italian: polemico (it) Portuguese: polémico (pt) polêmico (pt) (Brasil) Spanish: polémico (es) Swedish: polemisk (sv)

External links

• polemic in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• polemic in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911

Anagrams

• compile