One hot conductor and a neutral is called single phase; that makes complete sense. It continues to make sense with three phase power where you have three separate hot conductors. Why does the logic fall apart when you have two hot conductors? And if there is a reason why those two hot conductors are called single phase, why is the first example of a single hot and a neutral also called single phase?
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>Why is 240V electric called “single phase” despite being **two 120V hots 180° out of phase**?
This is exactly why it’s called single-phase.
240V single-phase power comes from the power grid, and then it’s split in half at the transformer to give you two 120V single-phase buses. These buses can then be bonded together if you need 240V power.
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