Ambiguus

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Having unclear or double meanings, capable of being understood in more than one way; lacking definiteness or distinctness in expression or intention; characterized by vagueness or uncertainty in interpretation
2. Exhibiting uncertainty or openness to multiple interpretations in communication; marked by indistinctness of meaning or ambiguous wording which can lead to confusion; showing indistinguishable or equivocal nature in context or signification
3. Meaning something that can be read or explained in different ways, reflecting indistinct or equivocal quality; involving obscurity or double entendres in message delivery; demonstrating lack of clarity or precision that invites varied understandings

Etymology: "Ambiguus" is Latin, an adjective meaning "wandering about" or "going in two directions," formed from "ambigere," "to wander about, to hesitate," which combines "ambi-" ("around, on both sides") with "agere" ("to drive, to move"). The sense was literal before it was figurative: something that wanders around, or a road that branches both ways, was "ambiguus." From there it came to mean being uncertain or doubtful about which way to go, and then a statement or thing that could be taken in more than one way. The Latin word passed into English in the 16th century, when writers borrowed it directly with the sense of "doubtful" or "of uncertain meaning." The English adjective has kept the abstract sense of double meaning, so that a phrase can be "ambiguous" without anyone physically moving at all. The word's origin is still visible in the root: its verb cousin "ambiguity" and the older sense of wandering both trace back to the same image of a path that forks in two directions.

Synonyms: ambiguous, unclear, vague, uncertain, equivocal

Antonyms: clear, explicit, certain, definite, unequivocal