ambiguity
/æm.bɪˈɡju.ɪ.ti/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 3.37 in modern English
17
Scrabble Score
9
Letters
5
Syllables
8
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
The state of being ambiguous; the state of leaving room for more than one interpretation.
Uncountable
noun
An instance of this state: words or statements that are open to more than one interpretation, explanation or meaning, especially if that meaning cannot be determined from the context.
Countable
Example Sentences
- "His speech was made with such great ambiguity that neither supporter nor opponent could be certain of his true position."
- "Whan this ſayd monument diſcouered was / Suche a ſuauite and fragrant odoure / Aſcended from the corps by ſingular grace / Paſſyng all worldly ſwetnes and ſauour / That all there present that day and hour / Suppoſed they had ben / in the felicite / Of erthely paradiſe / without ambiguite."
- "If two persons bore the same name, and confusion was likely to be caused, ambiguity was avoided by adding the name of the father[…]"
- "For people who would rather face a plague of locusts than permit an avoidable ambiguity, this is like having their underwear twisted. You may think we should say to such people, “Get a life.” By all means tell them that. I’m neither making these rules up nor trying to enforce them; my job in this book is to point out to you what seems to be the current state of the language and its speakers.""
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂ent- Proto-Indo-European *-s Proto-Indo-European *h₂énts? Proto-Indo-European *h₂m̥bʰíder. Proto-Italic *amβi- Latin ambi- Proto-Indo-European *h₂eǵ- Proto-Indo-European *-eti Proto-Indo-European *h₂éǵeti Proto-Italic *agō Latin agō Latin ambig(ō) Proto-Indo-European *-wós Proto-Italic *-wos Latin -uus Latin ambiguus Proto-Indo-European *-teh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-ts Proto-Indo-European *-teh₂ts Proto-Italic *-tāts Latin -tās Latin ambiguitāsder. Old French ambiguitebor. Middle English ambiguite English ambiguity From Middle English ambiguite, from Old French ambiguite (French ambiguïté), from Latin ambiguitas, equivalent to ambiguous + -ity.
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /æm.bɪˈɡju.ɪ.ti/
- British English: /æm.bɪˈɡjuː.ɪ.ti/