英语词汇“ambiguous”的英英意思、用法、释义、翻译、读音、例句、短语、词组-英语词典

adj

Look to the adjective ambiguous when you need to describe something that's open to more than one interpretation, like the headline "Squad helps dog bite victim."

Newspaper headlines can be unintentionally funny when they're ambiguous. In "Squad helps dog bite victim," is the squad helping a victim of a dog bite or helping a dog bite a victim? The ambi- prefix means "both ways," while the guous part is from the Latin verb agere, "to lead or drive." Thus an ambiguous sentence or situation drives us in two different directions at once. The accent is on the second syllable, "big," which you can remember since something that's ambiguous can lead to big misunderstandings.

CHOOSE YOUR WORDS

ambiguous / ambivalent

Something ambiguous is unclear or vague, like the end of a short story that leaves you scratching your head. But if you're ambivalent about something, you can take it or leave it. Whatever.

Ambiguous is something that is confusing or has more than one meaning. It can be the ambiguous look your ex-girlfriend gives you as she leaves the library, or the ambiguous ending of the movie Lost Highway, where you don't know what the heck just happened. Here's the word in action from the news:

Are there threads you might come back to later, or was that a deliberate choice to leave some things about him ambiguous? (New York Times)

"The election law in New York is written in an ill-defined, ambiguous way," Goldfeder said, adding that he did not believe any laws were broken. (Reuters)

Ambivalent is when you don't hate something, but you don't love it either. Since you feel two ways about it, you don't really care. It's often used to describe feelings, attitudes, and relationships:

Danya, now nearly 14, was ambivalent about leaving, drawn toward being a teenager in New York City. (New York Times)

Valentine's Day When You're Dating a Woman You're Ambivalent About. (All Word News)

He had told me early on that he was ambivalent about his maleness but had made peace with it. (New York Times)

When choosing between ambiguous and ambivalent, consider whether you are describing something that is unclear or vague: that's ambiguous. If it's a fluctuation in attitude or feeling, that's ambivalent. If you're ambivalent about ambiguous movie endings, stay away from David Lynch and stick to blockbusters when the good guys win.

WORD FAMILY

ambiguous: ambiguity, ambiguously, unambiguous+/ambiguity: ambiguities, unambiguity/unambiguous: unambiguously

USAGE EXAMPLES

Ambiguous lines of authority, Card added, are likely to be “a challenge.”

Washington Post(Jan 01, 2017)

Instead, it’s both virtuosic and ambiguous, yielding more to chew on than most videos of its era or ours.

Time(Dec 28, 2016)

“Estonians are not nervous — at best, apprehensive in the face of ambiguous messages,” he said.

New York Times(Dec 27, 2016)

1adj having more than one possible meaning

ambiguous words
frustrated by ambiguous instructions, the parents were unable to assemble the toy

Syn|Ant

double-barreled, double-barrelled

having two purposes; twofold

double-edged

capable of being interpreted in two usually contradictory ways

enigmatic, oracular

resembling an oracle in obscurity of thought

left-handed

ironically ambiguous

multi-valued, multivalent

having many values, meanings, or appeals

polysemantic, polysemous

of words; having many meanings

uncertain

ambiguous (especially in the negative)

unclear

not clear to the mind

equivocal

open to two or more interpretations; or of uncertain nature or significance; or (often) intended to mislead

unambiguous

having or exhibiting a single clearly defined meaning

monosemous

having only one meaning

clear

readily apparent to the mind

unambiguous, unequivocal, univocal

admitting of no doubt or misunderstanding; having only one meaning or interpretation and leading to only one conclusion

2adj open to two or more interpretations; or of uncertain nature or significance; or (often) intended to mislead

the polling had a complex and equivocal (or ambiguous) message for potential female candidates

Syn|Ant

equivocal
double, forked

having two meanings with intent to deceive

evasive

deliberately vague or ambiguous

indeterminate

of uncertain or ambiguous nature

unambiguous, unequivocal, univocal

admitting of no doubt or misunderstanding; having only one meaning or interpretation and leading to only one conclusion

unambiguous

having or exhibiting a single clearly defined meaning

absolute

expressing finality with no implication of possible change

straightforward

free from ambiguity

unquestionable

not open to question

3adj having no intrinsic or objective meaning; not organized in conventional patterns

an ambiguous situation with no frame of reference
ambiguous inkblots

Syn

unstructured

lacking definite structure or organization

单词	ambiguous
释义	ambiguous (once / 1082 pages) adj Look to the adjective ambiguous when you need to describe something that's open to more than one interpretation, like the headline "Squad helps dog bite victim." Newspaper headlines can be unintentionally funny when they're ambiguous. In "Squad helps dog bite victim," is the squad helping a victim of a dog bite or helping a dog bite a victim? The ambi- prefix means "both ways," while the guous part is from the Latin verb agere, "to lead or drive." Thus an ambiguous sentence or situation drives us in two different directions at once. The accent is on the second syllable, "big," which you can remember since something that's ambiguous can lead to big misunderstandings. CHOOSE YOUR WORDS ambiguous / ambivalent Something ambiguous is unclear or vague, like the end of a short story that leaves you scratching your head. But if you're ambivalent about something, you can take it or leave it. Whatever. Ambiguous is something that is confusing or has more than one meaning. It can be the ambiguous look your ex-girlfriend gives you as she leaves the library, or the ambiguous ending of the movie Lost Highway, where you don't know what the heck just happened. Here's the word in action from the news: Are there threads you might come back to later, or was that a deliberate choice to leave some things about him ambiguous? (New York Times) "The election law in New York is written in an ill-defined, ambiguous way," Goldfeder said, adding that he did not believe any laws were broken. (Reuters) Ambivalent is when you don't hate something, but you don't love it either. Since you feel two ways about it, you don't really care. It's often used to describe feelings, attitudes, and relationships: Danya, now nearly 14, was ambivalent about leaving, drawn toward being a teenager in New York City. (New York Times) Valentine's Day When You're Dating a Woman You're Ambivalent About. (All Word News) He had told me early on that he was ambivalent about his maleness but had made peace with it. (New York Times) When choosing between ambiguous and ambivalent, consider whether you are describing something that is unclear or vague: that's ambiguous. If it's a fluctuation in attitude or feeling, that's ambivalent. If you're ambivalent about ambiguous movie endings, stay away from David Lynch and stick to blockbusters when the good guys win. WORD FAMILY ambiguous: ambiguity, ambiguously, unambiguous+/ambiguity: ambiguities, unambiguity/unambiguous: unambiguously USAGE EXAMPLES Ambiguous lines of authority, Card added, are likely to be “a challenge.” Washington Post(Jan 01, 2017) Instead, it’s both virtuosic and ambiguous, yielding more to chew on than most videos of its era or ours. Time(Dec 28, 2016) “Estonians are not nervous — at best, apprehensive in the face of ambiguous messages,” he said. New York Times(Dec 27, 2016) 1adj having more than one possible meaning ambiguous words frustrated by ambiguous instructions, the parents were unable to assemble the toy Syn\|Ant double-barreled, double-barrelled having two purposes; twofold double-edged capable of being interpreted in two usually contradictory ways enigmatic, oracular resembling an oracle in obscurity of thought left-handed ironically ambiguous multi-valued, multivalent having many values, meanings, or appeals polysemantic, polysemous of words; having many meanings uncertain ambiguous (especially in the negative) unclear not clear to the mind equivocal open to two or more interpretations; or of uncertain nature or significance; or (often) intended to mislead unambiguous having or exhibiting a single clearly defined meaning monosemous having only one meaning clear readily apparent to the mind unambiguous, unequivocal, univocal admitting of no doubt or misunderstanding; having only one meaning or interpretation and leading to only one conclusion 2adj open to two or more interpretations; or of uncertain nature or significance; or (often) intended to mislead the polling had a complex and equivocal (or ambiguous) message for potential female candidates Syn\|Ant equivocal double, forked having two meanings with intent to deceive evasive deliberately vague or ambiguous indeterminate of uncertain or ambiguous nature unambiguous, unequivocal, univocal admitting of no doubt or misunderstanding; having only one meaning or interpretation and leading to only one conclusion unambiguous having or exhibiting a single clearly defined meaning absolute expressing finality with no implication of possible change straightforward free from ambiguity unquestionable not open to question 3adj having no intrinsic or objective meaning; not organized in conventional patterns an ambiguous situation with no frame of reference ambiguous inkblots Syn unstructured lacking definite structure or organization
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