ambiguity

am·bi·gu·i·ty

A0242900 (ăm′bĭ-gyo͞o′ĭ-tē)n. pl. am·bi·gu·i·ties 1. Doubtfulness or uncertainty as regards interpretation: "leading a life of alleged moral ambiguity" (Anatole Broyard).2. Something of doubtful meaning: a poem full of ambiguities.

ambiguity

(ˌæmbɪˈɡjuːɪtɪ) n, pl -ties1. the possibility of interpreting an expression in two or more distinct ways2. an instance of this, as in the sentence they are cooking apples3. vagueness or uncertainty of meaning: there are several ambiguities in the situation.

am•bi•gu•i•ty

(ˌæm bɪˈgyu ɪ ti)

n., pl. -ties. 1. doubtfulness or uncertainty of meaning or intention: to speak with ambiguity. 2. the condition of admitting more than one meaning. 3. an ambiguous word, expression, etc.: a contract free of ambiguities. [1375–1425; < Latin]

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	ambiguity - an expression whose meaning cannot be determined from its contextloophole - an ambiguity (especially one in the text of a law or contract) that makes it possible to evade a difficulty or obligationamphibology, amphiboly - an ambiguous grammatical construction; e.g., `they are flying planes' can mean either that someone is flying planes or that something is flying planesparisology - the use of ambiguous wordsdouble entendre - an ambiguity with one interpretation that is indelicatelocution, saying, expression - a word or phrase that particular people use in particular situations; "pardon the expression"
	2.	ambiguity - unclearness by virtue of having more than one meaningequivocalnessunclearness - incomprehensibility as a result of not being clearevasiveness, prevarication, equivocation - intentionally vague or ambiguouslexical ambiguity, polysemy - the ambiguity of an individual word or phrase that can be used (in different contexts) to express two or more different meaningstwilight zone, no man's land - the ambiguous region between two categories or states or conditions (usually containing some features of both); "but there is still a twilight zone, the tantalizing occurrences that are probably noise but might possibly be a signal"; "in the twilight zone between humor and vulgarity"; "in that no man's land between negotiation and aggression"unambiguity, unequivocalness - clarity achieved by the avoidance of ambiguity

ambiguity

noun vagueness, doubt, puzzle, uncertainty, obscurity, enigma, equivocation, inconclusiveness, indefiniteness, dubiety, dubiousness, tergiversation, indeterminateness, equivocality, doubtfulness, equivocacy the ambiguities of language

ambiguity

noun1. The quality or state of being ambiguous:ambiguousness, cloudiness, equivocalness, indefiniteness, nebulousness, obscureness, obscurity, uncertainty, unclearness, vagueness.2. An expression or term liable to more than one interpretation:double-entendre, equivocality, equivocation, equivoque, tergiversation.3. The use or an instance of equivocal language:equivocation, equivoque, euphemism, hedge, prevarication, shuffle, tergiversation, weasel word.Informal: waffle.

Translations

意义含糊歧义

ambiguous

(ӕmˈbigjuəs) adjective having more than one possible meaning. After the cat caught the mouse, it died is an ambiguous statement (ie it is not clear whether it = the cat or = the mouse). 不明确的，模棱两可的 amˈbiguously adverb模棱两可地ˌambiˈguity (-ˈgjuː-) noun 意义含糊，歧义

ambiguity

Ambiguity

Uncertainty or doubtfulness of the meaning of language.

When language is capable of being understood in more than one way by a reasonable person, ambiguity exists. It is not the use of peculiar words or of common words used in a peculiar sense. Words are ambiguous when their significance is unclear to persons with competent knowledge and skill to understand them.

There are two categories of ambiguity: latent and patent. Latent ambiguity exists when the language used is clear and intelligible so that it suggests one meaning but some extrinsic fact or evidence creates a need for interpretation or a choice among two or more possible meanings. In a classic case, Raffles v. Wichelhaus, 159 Eng. Rep. 375 (Ex. 1864), a contract was made to sell 125 bales of cotton that were to arrive on a ship called Peerless that sailed from Bombay, India. Unknown to the parties to the contract, two ships of the same name were to arrive from the same port during different months of the same year. This extraneous fact necessitated the interpretation of an otherwise clear and definite term of the contract. In such cases, extrinsic or Parol Evidence may be admitted to explain what was meant or to identify the property referred to in the writing.

A patent ambiguity is one that appears on the face of a document or writing because uncertain or obscure language has been used.

In the law of contracts, ambiguity means more than that the language has more than one meaning upon which reasonable persons could differ. It means that after a court has applied rules of interpretation, such as the plain meaning, course of dealing, Course of Performance, or Trade Usage rules to the unclear terms, the court still cannot say with certainty what meaning was intended by the parties to the contract. When this occurs, the court will admit as evidence extraneous proof of prior or contemporaneous agreements to determine the meaning of the ambiguous language. Parol evidence may be used to explain the meaning of a writing as long as its use does not vary the terms of the writing. If there is no such evidence, the court may hear evidence of the subjective intention or understanding of the parties to clarify the ambiguity.

Sometimes, courts decide the meaning of ambiguous language on the basis of who was responsible or at fault for the ambiguity. When only one party knew or should have known of the ambiguity, the unsuspecting party's subjective knowledge of the meaning will control. If both parties knew or should have known of the uncertainty, the court will look to the subjective understanding of both. The ambiguity no longer exists if the parties agree upon its meaning. If the parties disagree and the ambiguous provisions are material, no contract is formed because of lack of mutual assent.

Courts frequently interpret an ambiguous contract term against the interests of the party who prepared the contract and created the ambiguity. This is common in cases of adhesion contracts and insurance contracts. A drafter of a document should not benefit at the expense of an innocent party because the drafter was careless in drafting the agreement.

In Constitutional Law, statutes that contain ambiguous language are void for vagueness. The language of such laws is considered so obscure and uncertain that a reasonable person cannot determine from a reading what the law purports to command or prohibit. This statutory ambiguity deprives a person of the notice requirement of Due Process of Law, and, therefore, renders the statute unconstitutional.

ambiguity

n. when language has more than one meaning. If the ambiguity is obvious it is called "patent," and if there is a hidden ambiguity it is called "latent." If there is an ambiguity, and the original writer cannot effectively explain it, then the ambiguity will be decided in the light most favorable to the other party.

ambiguity

uncertainty in meaning. In legal documents an ambiguity maybe patent (i.e. apparent from a perusal of the document) or latent (i.e. one that becomes apparent in the light of facts that become known from sources outside the document). The general rule is that extrinsic evidence can be used to resolve latent ambiguity but not patent ambiguity. Since a landmark case in the UK in 1992, an ambiguity in a statute will allow the court to hear not only the terms of law commission reports but also of the debates in Parliament as recorded in Hansard.

AMBIGUITY, contracts, construction. When au expression has been used in aninstrument of writing which may be understood in more than one sense, it issaid there is an ambiguity,
2. There are two sorts of ambiguities of words, ambiguitas latens andambiguitas patens.
3. The first occurs when the deed or instrument is sufficiently certainand free from ambiguity, but the ambiguity is produced by somethingextrinsic, or some collateral matter out of the instrument; for example, ifa man devise property to his cousin A B, and he has two cousins of thatname, in such case parol evidence will be received to explain the ambiguity.
4. The second or patent ambiguity occurs when a clause in a deed, will,or other instrument, is so defectively expressed, that a court of law, whichhas to put a construction on the instrument, is unable to collect theintention of the party. In such case, evidence of the declaration of theparty cannot be submitted to explain his intention, and the clause will bevoid for its uncertainty. In Pennsylvania, this rule is somewhat qualified.3 Binn. 587; 4 Binn. 482. Vide generally, Bac. Max. Reg. 23; 1 Phu. Ev. 410to 420; 3 Stark. Ev. 1021 ; I Com. Dig. 575; Sudg. Vend. 113. The civil lawon this subject will be found in Dig. lib. 50, t. 17, 1. 67; lib. 45, t. 1,1. 8; and lib. 22, t. 1, 1. 4.

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Synonyms for ambiguity

noun vagueness

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noun the quality or state of being ambiguous

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noun an expression or term liable to more than one interpretation

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noun the use or an instance of equivocal language

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noun an expression whose meaning cannot be determined from its context

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noun unclearness by virtue of having more than one meaning

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