The mainstream media and popular science platforms are rife with misunderstandings about what a “polar vortex” is. The term most aptly describes the stratospheric polar vortex, a single feature dominating the cool-season circulation at ∼15–50 km altitude. Regional upper tropospheric jet stream variations dominate the tropospheric circulation, which is not well-described by the idea of a polar vortex; indeed, there is no single consistent definition of a tropospheric polar vortex in the literature. Stratospheric polar vortex disturbances profoundly influence extreme weather events such as cold air outbreaks (CAO); how the stratospheric polar vortex affects the tropospheric jets, local excursions of which drive CAOs, is not yet fully understood. The most public-facing parts of publications describing research on this topic are sometimes unclear about how the “polar vortex” is defined; greater clarity could help improve communications both within the community and with non-specialist audiences.