ambiguous
[æmˈbɪɡjʊːəs]
The verdict
“ambiguous” is outside the top-ranked German vocabulary, used as an adjective - the kind of word writers most often double-check.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency German
- 9
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - etwas offen lassend, mehrere Möglichkeiten oder Bedeutungen habend; mehrdeutig, zweideutig, missverständlich, doppeldeutig
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | ambiguous |
| Language | German |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | [æmˈbɪɡjʊːəs] |
| Letters | 9 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “ambiguous” sits in German frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The German entry for ambiguous is 9 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [æmˈbɪɡjʊːəs]. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 4 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
ambiguous has no tracked misspelling variants, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. Our dataset records no confusable match here, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
Wiktionary doesn't record an etymology for this headword, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct German form is ambiguous, spelled A-M-B-I-G-U-O-U-S.
Definition
- 1etwas offen lassend, mehrere Möglichkeiten oder Bedeutungen habend; mehrdeutig, zweideutig, missverständlich, doppeldeutig
- 2homonym, eine Homonym-Konstruktion aufweisend
- 3von fragwürdiger oder unbekannter Herkunft seiend; schwer zu begreifen, zu trennen oder zu klassifizieren; unklar, ungewiss, zweifelhaft
- 4Klarheit oder Bestimmtheit mangelnd; verschwommen, unklar, ungewiss
Synonyms
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “ambiguous”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct German spelling is A-M-B-I-G-U-O-U-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as [æmˈbɪɡjʊːəs] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Browse more German words and confusable pairs in the same reference. German words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.