amphibolic

American  

[am-fuh-bol-ik] / ˌæm fəˈbɒl ɪk /

adjective

1. equivocal; uncertain; changing; ambiguous.

---

Etymology

Origin of amphibolic

First recorded in 1850–55; amphibol(y) + -ic

Explanation

The word amphibolic is most often used in biochemistry to describe chemical processes that both break down substances and build new ones. It is also used to describe a certain group of silicate minerals that are part of igneous and metamorphic rock. In biochemistry, amphibolic technically describes something that is both catabolic (breaks down substances) and anabolic (builds substances), words that relate to the internal chemical processes that sustain life. The shared -bolic comes from a Greek word meaning "to throw or hit." Amphi-, also Greek, means "both," so amphibolic could refer to both types of "hitting" a chemical: First, it breaks a chemical down, and then, it builds something new with the pieces. Sometimes, in everyday speech, the word amphibolic is used to mean "vague" or "uncertain."

Example Sentences

Circular pathways are not suited for amphibolic pathways whereas linear pathways are.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

Angostura, the longitude and latitude of which I have already indicated from astronomical observations, stands at the foot of a hill of amphibolic schist* bare of vegetation.

From Personal Narrative of Travels to the Equinoctial Regions of America, During the Year 1799-1804 — Volume 3 by Humboldt, Alexander von

The amphibolic slate of Angostura, and masses of diorite in balls, with concentric layers, near Muitaco, appear to be superposed, not on mica-slate, but immediately on gneiss-granite.

From Personal Narrative of Travels to the Equinoctial Regions of America, During the Year 1799-1804 — Volume 3 by Humboldt, Alexander von

The most prevalent rock in the chain is gneiss; but there is also granite and mica-slate, together with numerous beds of amphibolic rocks.

From Narrative of a Second Expedition to the Shores of the Polar Sea by Franklin, John