AMBIGUOUS

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does ambiguous mean? 

• AMBIGUOUS (adjective)
  The adjective AMBIGUOUS has 3 senses:

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

2. having more than one possible meaning

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

  Familiarity information: AMBIGUOUS used as an adjective is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• AMBIGUOUS (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

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

Synonyms:

ambiguous; equivocal

Context example:

an equivocal response to an embarrassing question

Similar:

double; forked (having two meanings with intent to deceive)

evasive (deliberately vague or ambiguous)

indeterminate (of uncertain or ambiguous nature)

Also:

ambiguous (having more than one possible meaning)

Derivation:

ambiguity (unclearness by virtue of having more than one meaning)

ambiguity (an expression whose meaning cannot be determined from its context)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Having more than one possible meaning

Context example:

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

Similar:

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))

Also:

unclear (not clear to the mind)

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

Antonym:

unambiguous (having or exhibiting a single clearly defined meaning)

Derivation:

ambiguity (unclearness by virtue of having more than one meaning)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Having no intrinsic or objective meaning; not organized in conventional patterns

Context example:

ambiguous inkblots

Similar:

unstructured (lacking definite structure or organization)

Domain category:

psychological science; psychology (the science of mental life)

Derivation:

ambiguity (an expression whose meaning cannot be determined from its context)

 Context examples 

It also has a potentially ambiguous name.

(Identifiable Class, NCI Thesaurus)

A term used to describe an ambiguous morphologic pattern in the gastric mucosa, when there is doubt whether the findings represent a non-neoplastic or neoplastic pathologic process.

(Indefinite for Gastric Dysplasia, NCI Thesaurus)

Approximately 20% of the patients have ambiguous external genitalia.

(Juvenile Type Granulosa Cell Tumor, NCI Thesaurus)

A rare acute leukemia of ambiguous lineage in which the blasts do not express markers specific to myeloid or lymphoid lineage.

(Acute Undifferentiated Leukemia, NCI Thesaurus)

An acute leukemia of ambiguous lineage characterized by blasts which coexpress myeloid and T or B lineage antigens or concurrent B and T lineage antigens.

(Acute Biphenotypic Leukemia, NCI Thesaurus/WHO)

“Tragic, but ambiguous,” said he, pulling up the blind.

(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

However, only a few studies have been conducted to date dealing with women during the early stages of pregnancy, and the results are ambiguous.

(A new study highlights the importance of undertaking physical activity of moderate–vigorous intensity during the early weeks of pregnancy, University of Granada)

Detected by SEIS' more sensitive Very Broad Band sensors, these signals were even smaller than the Sol 128 event and more ambiguous in origin.

(NASA's InSight Detects First Likely 'Quake' on Mars, NASA)

An acute leukemia of ambiguous lineage in which there is a dual population of blasts with each population expressing markers of a distinct lineage (myeloid and lymphoid or B-and T-lymphocyte). (WHO, 2001) — 2003

(Acute Bilineal Leukemia, NCI Thesaurus)

An acute leukemia of ambiguous lineage.

(Mixed Phenotype Acute Leukemia, NCI Thesaurus)