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[ noun ] an expression whose meaning cannot be determined from its context
Used in print (Evan Esar, Humorous English; a guide to comic ,...)There are many types of ambiguity and many_of them have been described by rhetoricians under such names as amphibology , parisology , and other ologies . One species of ambiguity tries to baffle by interweaving repetition . Ambiguity of a non repetitious kind describes the dilemma one girl found herself in . Since brevity is the soul of ambiguity as_well as wit , newspaper headlines continually provide us with amusing samples . Apart from misplaced modifiers and headlinese , journalism contributes a wide variety of comic ambiguities in both editorial and advertising matter . Related terms |
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[ noun ] unclearness by virtue of having more than one meaning
Synonyms Used in print (Frank Oppenheimer, "Science and Fear-- A Discussion...)In_fact , the recent warnings about the use of X-rays have introduced fears and ambiguities of action which now require more detailed understanding , and thus in_this instance , science has momentarily aggravated our fears . Related terms unambiguity unambiguity unclearness no_man's_land equivocation polysemy equivocation |
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