How to say "ambiguity" in Japanese

• 曖昧さあいまいさ
  nounAmbiguity in the everyday sense: vagueness or unclearness of statements, answers, attitudes, or rules. The natural choice when something is simply not clear-cut, rather than a matter of a word having several meanings.
• 多義性たぎせい
  nounAmbiguity of a word with two or more distinct meanings — what is called polysemy in linguistics. Choose it when the point is multiple meanings, not vagueness or unclearness.
• あいまい性あいまいせい
  nounAmbiguity with the nuance of fuzziness: something lacking a clear boundary or definition. It overlaps with 曖昧さ, but where the point is indistinctness rather than multiple readings, this is the closer fit.
• アンビギュイティ
  nounThe English word 'ambiguity' transcribed into katakana — no distinct sense or nuance of its own. It is uncommon, and seldom the word you want: a native term is the usual way to say it.

Choose 「曖昧さ」 for ambiguity as general vagueness or unclearness, 多義性 for the ambiguity of a word with several meanings (polysemy), 「あいまい性」 when the emphasis is fuzziness or unclear boundaries; 「アンビギュイティ」, a katakana borrowing, is seldom needed.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

• 曖昧さあいまいさambiguity
• 多義性たぎせいambiguity (of a word)
• あいまい性あいまいせいambiguity
• アンビギュイティambiguity