ambiguity B2 Topic:Abstract Ideas US /æm.bɪˈɡjuː.ɪ.ti/ See IPA manual Freq #32016 Meanings 1 noun The quality of having more than one possible meaning; lack of clarity. His speech was made with such ambiguity that no one was sure where he stood. 2 noun A word or statement that can be understood in more than one way. The contract contained several ambiguities that the lawyers had to resolve. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 noun · the quality of having more... vaguenessunclearness ↔ Opposites unambiguity Word family Forms ambiguities Related forms ambiguous Etymology AI details From Middle English ambiguite, from Old French ambiguite (French ambiguïté), from Latin ambiguitas, equivalent to ambiguous + -ity. ambiguite Middle English ambiguitas Latin View etymology graph -> Topics Abstract Ideas External links Google Images Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary # ambiguity **Type:** Word **Level:** B2 **Part of speech:** noun **IPA (US):** /æm.bɪˈɡjuː.ɪ.ti/ **Frequency rank:** 32016 ## Meanings 1. The quality of having more than one possible meaning; lack of clarity. 2. A word or statement that can be understood in more than one way. ## Examples - His speech was made with such ambiguity that no one was sure where he stood. - The contract contained several ambiguities that the lawyers had to resolve. ## Antonyms - unambiguity ## Related Forms - ambiguous ## Roots and Affixes - Root: ambiguite - Root: ambiguitas ## Etymology From Middle English ambiguite, from Old French ambiguite (French ambiguïté), from Latin ambiguitas, equivalent to ambiguous + -ity. ## AI Etymology Ambiguity is from Middle English ambiguite, from Old French ambiguite (French ambiguïté), from Latin ambiguitas, equivalent to ambiguous plus -ity. The abstract suffix turns equivalent to ambiguous into a noun for a quality, condition, or measurable property, which keeps the modern meanings close to the adjective behind it. In use as a noun, ambiguity denotes the quality of having more than one possible meaning; lack of clarity and a word or statement that can be understood in more than one way. The same word family continues in related entries such as ambiguous. ## Topics - Abstract Ideas markdown