ambivalentlyadv.
/amˈbɪvələntli/, /amˈbɪvəln̩tli/, /amˈbɪvl̩(ə)ntli/, U.S. /æmˈbɪv(ə)ləntli/ In an ambivalent manner; esp. with mixed or uncertain feelings; (also) in a manner open to different or contradictory interpretations.
ΚΠ
1920 G. S. Hall Morale vi. 105 The very hardships and brutalities of war, the harshness of discipline, and the exhaustion of training and encounters tend to ebb ambivalently.
1967 D. L. Thomas Plungers & Peacocks (1989) xi. 274 Wall Street reacted ambivalently to the New Deal Legislation.
1990 M. Stanton Sándor Ferenczi 196 Ferenczi uses the term ‘hate’ ambivalently.
2000 P. Thompson Voice of Past (ed. 3) iii. 108 Women had less time and less money to spend, and their presence in the pubs was only ambivalently accepted.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2020; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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adv.1920