disambiguate

[dis-am-big-yoo-eyt]

verb (used with object)

disambiguated, disambiguating 

1. to remove the ambiguity from; make unambiguous.

   In order to disambiguate the sentence “She lectured on the famous passenger ship,” you'll have to write either “lectured on board” or “lectured about.”

disambiguate

/ ˌdɪsæmˈbɪɡjʊˌeɪt /

verb

1. (tr) to make (an ambiguous expression) unambiguous

Other Word Forms

• disambiguation noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of disambiguate¹

First recorded in 1960–65; dis- ¹ + ambigu(ous) + -ate ¹

Example Sentences

There are a lot of good reasons for this, chiefly that even a small amount of time can help our rational minds disambiguate between meaningless provocation and matters of importance.

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“We have to decide: Is it really the same entity that we are referring to? Sometimes context will disambiguate for us, and often it will not,” Baron says.

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“When you have objects that are in a cluster, so to speak, it’s very difficult to disambiguate which one is which.”

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Right now, for instance, I’m test-driving a new feature where I write down what earrings I wear every day, leading to speculations about how I should disambiguate between all the different pairs I own.

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Gomes also discussed “neural matching,” a technique that uses documents online to help disambiguate imprecise language.

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Related Words

• authorize 
• base 
• confirm 
• determine 
• enact 
• formulate 
• make 
• prove 
• ratify