歧义 (qí yì) — ambiguity (n.), a situation where a word or phrase can be understood in more than one way

Definition

Examples

• 这个句子有歧义，让人无法确定作者的意思。
  Zhè ge jù zi yǒu qí yì, ràng rén wú fǎ què dìng zuò zhě de yì si.
  This sentence is ambiguous, making it impossible to determine what the author meant.
• 合同中的歧义可能会导致法律纠纷。
  Hé tong zhōng de qí yì kě néng huì dǎo zhì fǎ lǜ jiū fēn.
  Ambiguities in the contract may lead to legal disputes.
• 为了避免歧义，他在报告中使用了更精确的术语。
  Wèi le bì miǎn qí yì, tā zài bào gào zhōng shǐ yòng le gèng jīng què de shù yǔ.
  To avoid ambiguity, he used more precise terminology in the report.

Origin