ambiguous

Could mean either

People often use ambiguous to mean unclear and with good reason: things that are ambiguous are not clear, but in a particular sense: it has two possible meanings.

The kind of meaning can be of many different kinds: an ambiguous term literally has two different meanings.

An ambiguous relationship seems to have certain qualities some of the time, and completely different qualities at another time.

If something is morally ambiguous it can be construed as right or wrong, depending on the interpreter’s point of view.

unclear

vague

Unclear, ill-defined

nebulousUnclear and formless
obscureUnknown to most
murkyDark and unclear

fuzzy · hazy · cloudy · indistinct · opaque · blurry · foggy · muddled · indefinite · imprecise

dual

polysemous

Having multiple meanings

multivalentHaving multiple values or meanings
double-edgedHaving opposite effects
two-sidedWith opposite surfaces

Janus-faced · double-entendre · punning · wordplay · bifurcated · dichotomous · dualistic · binary · either-or · twofold

puzzling

enigmatic

Puzzling and obscure

crypticObscure in meaning
mysteriousBeyond easy comprehension
perplexingCausing mental confusion

baffling · confounding · bewildering · inscrutable · paradoxical · riddling · mystifying · confusing · befuddling · arcane

deceptive

equivocal

Uncertain in meaning

misleadingCausing false beliefs
evasiveAvoiding direct response
disingenuousFeigning ignorance or innocence

slippery · shifty · hedging · noncommittal · prevaricating · duplicitous · double-dealing · two-faced · weaselly · mealy-mouthed

unstable

fluid

Substance that flows

shiftingChanging position or form
changeableCapable of alteration
mutableAble to be changed

protean · mercurial · fluctuating · unsettled · transitional · tentative · provisional · inconclusive · open-ended · unresolved

ambiguous

vague

polysemous

enigmatic

equivocal

fluid

ambiguous

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