ambivalence

Also am·biv·a·len·cy

[am-biv-uh-luhns]

noun

1. uncertainty or fluctuation, especially when caused by inability to make a choice or by a simultaneous desire to say or do two opposite or conflicting things.

2. Psychology.,  the coexistence within an individual of positive and negative feelings toward the same person, object, or action, simultaneously drawing that individual in opposite directions.

ambivalence

/ æmˈbɪvələns /

noun

1. the simultaneous existence of two opposed and conflicting attitudes, emotions, etc

Other Word Forms

• ambivalent adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of ambivalence¹

First recorded in 1910–15; ambi- + valence

Example Sentences

Deutch captures not only Seberg’s own vibrant ambivalence but her cadence with its inexplicably magical mix of musical, hesitant and precise — the voice of a child’s talking doll.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The AI-generated Angie seems a bit overdone when compared to the more conflicted human original, whose moodiness shifts mercurially between impudence and ambivalence.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

But given the president's previous ambivalence about Nato, alliance members want reassurance that when the sovereignty of an ally is threatened, Washington can be relied on to respond.

Read more on BBC

It was a mix of ambivalence, grievance and concern.

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When ambivalence — the mental conflict of having mixed feelings — becomes too uncomfortable, people often cope by polarizing their attitudes on unrelated topics.

Read more on Salon

Related Words

• doubt 
• hesitancy 
• hesitation 
• indecision 
• uncertainty