adj · academic
ambiguous
/æmˈbɪɡjuəs/am·BIG·u·ous
open to more than one interpretation; not clear or definite
Examples
“The survey question was ambiguous, so respondents answered in different ways.”
“In Task 2 you should avoid ambiguous wording so your position is clear.”
“The term ‘significant’ is ambiguous without numerical context.”
Band 8 sentence
“The wording of the policy was deliberately ambiguous, allowing different departments to interpret it according to their priorities.”
Collocations
- be ambiguous
- ambiguous wording
- remain ambiguous
Word family
Common mistakes
use 'ambiguous' like 'confusing' always→'confusing' khi chủ yếu gây rối; 'ambiguous' khi có hơn một cách hiểu
say 'it is ambiguous that…'→'it is ambiguous whether/what/why…'
Say it for a higher band
5unclear→6vague→7+ambiguous
Synonyms
unclear
vague
Easily confused
vague
“The instructions were vague, so I didn't know exactly what to do.”
unclear
“The results are unclear and need further analysis.”
Related words
Learn this word with the rest of its set, and get reminded at the right time.
In Sublist 8
Learn it with its set