Difference between “vague”, “unclear” and “ambiguous”
What is the difference between "vague", "unclear" and "ambiguous"? All three have the same meaning to me, so when should each be used?
differences adjectives
edited May 12 '12 at 7:27
RegDwigнt♦
83k31281379
asked May 12 '12 at 7:11
phantomphantom
67128
add a comment |
What is the difference between "vague", "unclear" and "ambiguous"? All three have the same meaning to me, so when should each be used?
differences adjectives
edited May 12 '12 at 7:27
RegDwigнt♦
83k31281379
asked May 12 '12 at 7:11
phantomphantom
67128
and nebulous too
– Ooker
Feb 2 '16 at 6:42
add a comment |
What is the difference between "vague", "unclear" and "ambiguous"? All three have the same meaning to me, so when should each be used?
differences adjectives
edited May 12 '12 at 7:27
RegDwigнt♦
83k31281379
asked May 12 '12 at 7:11
phantomphantom
67128
What is the difference between "vague", "unclear" and "ambiguous"? All three have the same meaning to me, so when should each be used?
differences adjectives
differences adjectives
edited May 12 '12 at 7:27
RegDwigнt♦
83k31281379
asked May 12 '12 at 7:11
phantomphantom
67128
edited May 12 '12 at 7:27
RegDwigнt♦
83k31281379
asked May 12 '12 at 7:11
phantomphantom
67128
edited May 12 '12 at 7:27
RegDwigнt♦
83k31281379
edited May 12 '12 at 7:27
RegDwigнt♦
83k31281379
edited May 12 '12 at 7:27
RegDwigнt♦
83k31281379
83k31281379
asked May 12 '12 at 7:11
phantomphantom
67128
asked May 12 '12 at 7:11
phantomphantom
67128
asked May 12 '12 at 7:11
phantomphantom
67128
67128
and nebulous too
– Ooker
Feb 2 '16 at 6:42
add a comment |
and nebulous too
– Ooker
Feb 2 '16 at 6:42
and nebulous too
– Ooker
Feb 2 '16 at 6:42
and nebulous too
– Ooker
Feb 2 '16 at 6:42
add a comment |
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
Vague means that the information is lacking in detail - if you give a vague description of something, the listener/reader won't be able to imagine the subject with much precision.
Unclear could mean the same but also might suggest that the information is confusing, either as a result of poor use of language or perhaps through contradicting information.
Ambiguous is when something can have more than one meaning or refer to more than one subject and the listener/reader might have difficulty knowing exactly what it is you are describing.
answered May 12 '12 at 11:33
KarlKarl
5,6071931
add a comment |
'Vague' is used where something lacks precision or detail, while 'ambiguous' is something that could have two meanings, or is open to interpretation.
"Where is David?" ~ "He is in Europe" is vague, as Europe is a big place and David could be in any of it.
"I saw David in my car" is ambiguous, because it is not clear whether 'I' or 'David' was in the car.
answered May 12 '12 at 7:21
Roaring FishRoaring Fish
14.3k12353
1
thanks roaring, your example are so clear to understand me.
– phantom
May 14 '12 at 5:56
add a comment |
Your Answer
StackExchange.ready(function() {
var channelOptions = {
tags: "".split(" "),
id: "97"
};
initTagRenderer("".split(" "), "".split(" "), channelOptions);
StackExchange.using("externalEditor", function() {
// Have to fire editor after snippets, if snippets enabled
if (StackExchange.settings.snippets.snippetsEnabled) {
StackExchange.using("snippets", function() {
createEditor();
});
}
else {
createEditor();
}
});
function createEditor() {
StackExchange.prepareEditor({
heartbeatType: 'answer',
autoActivateHeartbeat: false,
convertImagesToLinks: false,
noModals: true,
showLowRepImageUploadWarning: true,
reputationToPostImages: null,
bindNavPrevention: true,
postfix: "",
imageUploader: {
brandingHtml: "Powered by u003ca class="icon-imgur-white" href="https://imgur.com/"u003eu003c/au003e",
contentPolicyHtml: "User contributions licensed under u003ca href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"u003ecc by-sa 3.0 with attribution requiredu003c/au003e u003ca href="https://stackoverflow.com/legal/content-policy"u003e(content policy)u003c/au003e",
allowUrls: true
},
noCode: true, onDemand: true,
discardSelector: ".discard-answer"
,immediatelyShowMarkdownHelp:true
});
}
});
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
StackExchange.ready(
function () {
StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fenglish.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f67523%2fdifference-between-vague-unclear-and-ambiguous%23new-answer', 'question_page');
}
);
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
Vague means that the information is lacking in detail - if you give a vague description of something, the listener/reader won't be able to imagine the subject with much precision.
Unclear could mean the same but also might suggest that the information is confusing, either as a result of poor use of language or perhaps through contradicting information.
Ambiguous is when something can have more than one meaning or refer to more than one subject and the listener/reader might have difficulty knowing exactly what it is you are describing.
answered May 12 '12 at 11:33
KarlKarl
5,6071931
add a comment |
Vague means that the information is lacking in detail - if you give a vague description of something, the listener/reader won't be able to imagine the subject with much precision.
Unclear could mean the same but also might suggest that the information is confusing, either as a result of poor use of language or perhaps through contradicting information.
Ambiguous is when something can have more than one meaning or refer to more than one subject and the listener/reader might have difficulty knowing exactly what it is you are describing.
answered May 12 '12 at 11:33
KarlKarl
5,6071931
add a comment |
Vague means that the information is lacking in detail - if you give a vague description of something, the listener/reader won't be able to imagine the subject with much precision.
Unclear could mean the same but also might suggest that the information is confusing, either as a result of poor use of language or perhaps through contradicting information.
Ambiguous is when something can have more than one meaning or refer to more than one subject and the listener/reader might have difficulty knowing exactly what it is you are describing.
answered May 12 '12 at 11:33
KarlKarl
5,6071931
Vague means that the information is lacking in detail - if you give a vague description of something, the listener/reader won't be able to imagine the subject with much precision.
Unclear could mean the same but also might suggest that the information is confusing, either as a result of poor use of language or perhaps through contradicting information.
Ambiguous is when something can have more than one meaning or refer to more than one subject and the listener/reader might have difficulty knowing exactly what it is you are describing.
answered May 12 '12 at 11:33
KarlKarl
5,6071931
edited May 14 '12 at 7:23
answered May 12 '12 at 11:33
KarlKarl
5,6071931
answered May 12 '12 at 11:33
KarlKarl
5,6071931
answered May 12 '12 at 11:33
KarlKarl
5,6071931
5,6071931
add a comment |
add a comment |
'Vague' is used where something lacks precision or detail, while 'ambiguous' is something that could have two meanings, or is open to interpretation.
"Where is David?" ~ "He is in Europe" is vague, as Europe is a big place and David could be in any of it.
"I saw David in my car" is ambiguous, because it is not clear whether 'I' or 'David' was in the car.
answered May 12 '12 at 7:21
Roaring FishRoaring Fish
14.3k12353
1
thanks roaring, your example are so clear to understand me.
– phantom
May 14 '12 at 5:56
add a comment |
'Vague' is used where something lacks precision or detail, while 'ambiguous' is something that could have two meanings, or is open to interpretation.
"Where is David?" ~ "He is in Europe" is vague, as Europe is a big place and David could be in any of it.
"I saw David in my car" is ambiguous, because it is not clear whether 'I' or 'David' was in the car.
answered May 12 '12 at 7:21
Roaring FishRoaring Fish
14.3k12353
1
thanks roaring, your example are so clear to understand me.
– phantom
May 14 '12 at 5:56
add a comment |
'Vague' is used where something lacks precision or detail, while 'ambiguous' is something that could have two meanings, or is open to interpretation.
"Where is David?" ~ "He is in Europe" is vague, as Europe is a big place and David could be in any of it.
"I saw David in my car" is ambiguous, because it is not clear whether 'I' or 'David' was in the car.
answered May 12 '12 at 7:21
Roaring FishRoaring Fish
14.3k12353
'Vague' is used where something lacks precision or detail, while 'ambiguous' is something that could have two meanings, or is open to interpretation.
"Where is David?" ~ "He is in Europe" is vague, as Europe is a big place and David could be in any of it.
"I saw David in my car" is ambiguous, because it is not clear whether 'I' or 'David' was in the car.
answered May 12 '12 at 7:21
Roaring FishRoaring Fish
14.3k12353
edited May 12 '12 at 8:39
answered May 12 '12 at 7:21
Roaring FishRoaring Fish
14.3k12353
answered May 12 '12 at 7:21
Roaring FishRoaring Fish
14.3k12353
answered May 12 '12 at 7:21
Roaring FishRoaring Fish
14.3k12353
14.3k12353
1
thanks roaring, your example are so clear to understand me.
– phantom
May 14 '12 at 5:56
add a comment |
1
thanks roaring, your example are so clear to understand me.
– phantom
May 14 '12 at 5:56
1
1
thanks roaring, your example are so clear to understand me.
– phantom
May 14 '12 at 5:56
thanks roaring, your example are so clear to understand me.
– phantom
May 14 '12 at 5:56
add a comment |
Thanks for contributing an answer to English Language & Usage Stack Exchange!
- Please be sure to answer the question. Provide details and share your research!
But avoid …
- Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers.
- Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience.
To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers.
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
StackExchange.ready(
function () {
StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fenglish.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f67523%2fdifference-between-vague-unclear-and-ambiguous%23new-answer', 'question_page');
}
);
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
and nebulous too
– Ooker
Feb 2 '16 at 6:42