What does the word "ambiguity" mean?
Q: What does the word "ambiguity" mean?
A: Ambiguity means that what a thing is, is not clear. It can refer to a choice between two different things or two different meanings of something.
Q: How can ambiguity lead to misunderstandings?
A: Words or sentences that are ambiguous can lead to misunderstandings because people may interpret them differently and get the wrong meaning.
Q: What is an example of ambiguity in language?
A: An example of ambiguity in language is the sentence “The peasants are revolting” which could mean either that the peasants are standing in the streets with placards shouting “We want more pay” (“revolting” as a verb) or that they are horrible, disgusting (“revolting” as an adjective).
Q: How did Ronnie Barker use ambiguity for comedic purposes?
A: Ronnie Barker used ambiguity for comedic purposes by giving examples such as when a mother says to her little boy "Johnny, go over the road and see how old Mrs Jones is" and he comes back saying "Mrs Jones says it is none of my business". In this case, his mother meant "old" in a friendly way but Johnny interpreted it literally and thought she wanted him to find out Mrs Jones' age.
Q: What does it mean if something is unambiguous?
A: If something is unambiguous then it means that it has one clear meaning and cannot be interpreted differently.
Q: How does vagueness differ from ambiguity?
A: Vagueness differs from ambiguity because vagueness means there is so little detail given that a statement can mean almost anything whereas ambiguity refers to two different meanings or interpretations of something.
