amphibology

[ am-fuh-bol-uh-jee ]

noun

, plural am·phi·bol·o·gies.

1. amphiboly.

amphibology

/ æmˌfɪbəˈlɒdʒɪkəl; æmˈfɪbəlɪ; ˌæmfɪˈbɒlədʒɪ; æmˈfɪbələs /

noun

1. ambiguity of expression, esp when due to a grammatical construction, as in save rags and waste paper

Derived Forms

• amphibological, adjective
• amˌphiboˈlogically, adverb
• ˌamphiˈbolic, adjective

Other Words From

• am·phib·o·log·i·cal [am-fib-, uh, -, loj, -i-k, uh, l], adjective
• am·phibo·logi·cal·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of amphibology¹

1325–75; Middle English amphibologie < Late Latin amphibologia. See amphiboly, -logy

Word History and Origins

Origin of amphibology¹

C14: from Late Latin amphibologia, ultimately from Greek amphibolos ambiguous; see amphibole , -logy

Example Sentences

Here’s where the book gets funny, shuffling through various 13th-century attempts to salvage dishonesty: equivocation, mental reservation, amphibology.

From Slate

Of course, the theologians who advocated amphibology operated from a religious framework that feels remote to us now.

From Slate

Amphibology posits that there are many different kinds of language, “purely mental, purely vocal, purely written and a mixture of these,” all of which blend together to produce a true or false statement.

From Slate

Amphibology, am-fib-ol′o-ji, n. the use of ambiguous phrases or such as can be construed in two senses.

From Project Gutenberg

It is not only vague, but common-place: there is no particular reason that we know of why a summer dream should be fairer than a winter dream; and we cannot think that the poet meant to make use of that figure of speech called amphibology, although the line will bear a double interpretation.

From Project Gutenberg