Meaning
Ambiguous means unclear, having more than one possible meaning or interpretation, or open to different understandings.
Grammar and Usage
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Part of speech: Adjective
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Typically used to describe statements, situations, feelings, or expressions that are not clear.
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Common structure:
- an ambiguous statement/question/remark
- ambiguous feelings/attitude
Common Phrases
- ambiguous answer – an answer that could mean different things.
- morally ambiguous – not clearly right or wrong.
- legally ambiguous – not clearly defined in law.
Collocations
- highly ambiguous
- vague and ambiguous
- ambiguous wording
- ambiguous situation
Examples
- His reply was so ambiguous that I wasn’t sure what he meant.
- The directions on the map were ambiguous and caused confusion.
- She gave an ambiguous smile that could mean either approval or sarcasm.
- The movie ending was ambiguous, leaving the audience to interpret it.
- Their relationship is ambiguous, neither clearly friendship nor romance.
- The law is written in an ambiguous way, making it open to debate.
- Her tone was ambiguous—I couldn’t tell if she was serious or joking.
Synonyms or Related
- unclear
- vague
- equivocal
- indefinite
- obscure
Antonym
- clear
- definite
- explicit
- unambiguous
