ambivalence

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Archived revision by WingerBot (talk | contribs) as of 09:28, 14 October 2019.
Jump to navigation Jump to search

English

Etymology

From German Ambivalenz (“simultaneous conflicting feelings”), from Latin ambo (“both”) and valentia (“strength”), from the verb valere (“to be strong”) (see valiant). Coined in 1910 by Swiss psychologist Eugen Bleuler; by 1929, it had taken on a broader literary and general sense.

Noun

ambivalence (countable and uncountable, plural ambivalences)

  1. The coexistence of opposing attitudes or feelings (such as love and hate) towards a person, object or idea.
    • 1952, Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man, Prologue:
      "I dearly loved my master, son," she said.
      "You should have hated him," I said.
      "He gave me several sons," she said, "and because I loved my sons I learned to love their father though I hated him too."
      "I too have become acquainted with ambivalence, I said.
  2. A state of uncertainty or indecisiveness.

Usage notes

This word is often used to express a lack of concern about the outcome of a choice to be made. In this case, a more appropriate word to use is indifference.

Translations

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

French

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ɑ̃.bi.va.lɑ̃s/
  • Audio:(file)

Noun

ambivalence f (plural ambivalences)

  1. ambivalence
  2. ambiguity
Retrieved from "https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=ambivalence&oldid=55314277"