ambiguity

[ am-bi-gyoo-i-tee ]
/ ˌæm bɪˈgyu ɪ ti /

noun, plural am·bi·gu·i·ties.

doubtfulness or uncertainty of meaning or intention: to speak with ambiguity; an ambiguity of manner.
an unclear, indefinite, or equivocal word, expression, meaning, etc.: a contract free of ambiguities; the ambiguities of modern poetry.

Origin of ambiguity

1375–1425; late Middle English ambiguite < Latin ambiguitās, equivalent to ambigu(us) ambiguous + -itās -ity

OTHER WORDS FROM ambiguity

non·am·bi·gu·i·ty, noun, plural non·am·bi·gu·i·ties.

Example sentences from the Web for ambiguity

British Dictionary definitions for ambiguity

ambiguity
/ (ˌæmbɪˈɡjuːɪtɪ) /

noun plural -ties

the possibility of interpreting an expression in two or more distinct ways
an instance of this, as in the sentence they are cooking apples
vagueness or uncertainty of meaning there are several ambiguities in the situation