What does ambiguity mean?
Word: Ambiguity
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Ambiguity means the state of being open to more than one meaning, so that a reader or listener cannot be sure which one is intended.
Synonyms: double meaning
How do you spell ambiguity?
Syllables: am - bi - gu - i - ty
Tricky part: The ending is -uity: after the u comes an i that is said as its own beat, so it is never -uety or -uty.
Watch out for: ambiguety, ambiguty
Memory tip: Say it slowly, am-bi-gyoo-i-ty, and count five beats; the fourth beat is the little i that people drop.
Ambiguity in a sentence
Example 1: The ambiguity of the clue had the whole quiz team puzzling for five minutes.
Example 2: Mr Iyer rewrote the question to remove any ambiguity about the units.
Example 3: The poem's ending has a deliberate ambiguity that leaves readers guessing.
Fun Fact
Some jokes run on ambiguity: in 'Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana', the words flies and like change their jobs between the two halves.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of the word ambiguity as used in the sentence:
There was no ambiguity in Coach Rao's message: practice starts at six, rain or shine.
a) doubt
b) clarity
c) confusion
d) vagueness
Show answer
b) clarity. Clarity means being clear and easy to understand; confusion, vagueness and doubt all sit on the same side as ambiguity.
Mingle-Mangle
The sentence contains a jumbled word. Choose the word it hides:
The headline's tiyugmbia left readers wondering who had actually won the match.
a) ambiguity
b) ambiguous
c) antiquity
d) ambition
Show answer
a) ambiguity. The letters include an m, a b and a g but no n, o or s, so only ambiguity can be made.
Spell-o-Spell
Choose the meaning of the only correctly spelt word in the list.
1. sincerety 2. generocity 3. curiousity 4. ambiguity
a) the quality of being honest and meaning what you say
b) uncertainty over what a speaker or writer really intends
c) readiness to give freely to others
d) a strong wish to find out about things
Show answer
b) uncertainty over what a speaker or writer really intends. Curiosity drops the u of curious, sincerity has an i after the r and generosity an s before its ending, so ambiguity is the one correct word.
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
The class captain read the notice twice, but the ambeguity about the start time meant half the team reached the ground an hour early.
a) ambeguity
b) notice
c) ground
d) captain
Show answer
a) ambeguity. After the m comes bi, the same pair that starts bicycle, so ambeguity is the slip.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Exam setters try to remove ambiguity from questions so that ____.
a) pupils can skip the hard parts
b) each question has only one fair answer
c) the paper has fewer pages
d) each question takes longer to read
Show answer
b) each question has only one fair answer
2. Which sentence can be read in two different ways?
a) I saw the boy with the binoculars.
b) We bought new binoculars yesterday.
c) I looked at the birds through my binoculars.
d) The boy held binoculars in his left hand.
Show answer
a) I saw the boy with the binoculars.
