ambiguous

English

Etymology

From Latin ambiguus (“moving from side to side, of doubtful nature”), from ambigere (“to go about, wander, doubt”), from ambi- (“around, about, on both sides”) + agere (“to drive, move”).

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /æmˈbɪɡ.ju.əs/
• (US, Canada) IPA^(key): /æmˈbɪɡ.ju.əs/,

  • Audio (US)

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• (General Australian) IPA^(key): /æmˈbɪɡ.jʉ.əs/
• Rhymes: -ɪɡjuəs
• Hyphenation: am‧bi‧gu‧ous

Adjective

ambiguous (comparative more ambiguous, superlative most ambiguous)

1. Open to multiple interpretations.

   Synonyms: equivocal, unclear

   Antonyms: unambiguous, clear

   The politician was criticized for his ambiguous statements and lack of precision.

2. (obsolete, of a person) Hesitant; uncertain; not taking sides.
   • 1662, Thomas Salusbury, (Please provide the book title or journal name):

     And forasmuch as in this same question I am ambiguous, and Simplicius is resolute....

Derived terms

Related terms

• ambages
• ambiguity
• ambiguate
• ambiguation
• disambiguation

Translations

See also

• contradictory
• mistakable
• confusing

Further reading

• “ambiguous”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “ambiguous”, in The Century Dictionary , New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.

References

• John A. Simpson and Edmund S. C. Weiner, editors (1989), “ambiguous”, in The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd edition, Oxford: Clarendon Press, →ISBN.