Where does “ambiguity” come from?
Ambiguity comes from Middle English ambiguite, from Old French ambiguite, from Latin ambiguitas, derived from ambiguus meaning uncertain, rooted in ambigere meaning to wander about, from ambi- meaning both ways, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European h₂m̥bʰi.
ambiguity (English): Something, particularly words and sentences, that...
Definitions
- Something, particularly words and sentences, that...
Ancestry of “ambiguity”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | ambiguite | — |
| 2 | Old French | ambiguite | — |
| 3 | Latin | ambiguitas | ambiguity, uncertainty, equivocalness |
| 4 | Latin | ambiguus | going two ways, hither and thither, moving from... |
| 5 | Latin | ambigo | I go about; I wander; I hesitate, waver, doubt |
| 6 | Latin | ambi- | around, about |
| 7 | Latin | ambō | both |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂m̥bʰi | around, on either side of, about; in exchange... |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂n̥tbʰi | — |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂énts | forehead; front |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂ent- | face; forehead; front |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂en- | on, onto |