ambiguus

ambĭgŭus, a, um, adj. [ambigo], going about, hither and thither.

I.

Lit.:

per ambiguum favorem gratiam victoris spectare,

i. e. in that they show equal friendliness to both sides, Liv. 21, 52:

ambiguus Proteus,

who sometimes takes one form, sometimes another, changeable, Ov. M. 2, 9:

ambiguus fuerit, modo vir, modo femina, Scython,

id. ib. 4, 280:

Inque virum soliti vultus mutare ferinos Ambigui prosecta lupi,

they sometimes assume the form of a wolf and sometimes that of a man, id. ib. 7, 271:

promisit Ambiguam Salamina, h. l. = alteram,

a second Salamis, Hor. C. 1, 7, 29. —

II.

Transf.

A.

Uncertain, doubtful (syn.: dubius, incertus): ambiguum est quod in ambas agi partes animo potest. Hujusmodi apud Graecos amphibola dicuntur, Paul. ex Fest. p. 17 Müll.:

quidquid incerti mihi in animo prius aut ambiguom fuit, Nunc liquet, nunc defaecatum est,

Plaut. Ps. 2, 4, 69: etiam si dudum fuerat ambiguom hoc mihi, * Ter. Hec. 4, 4, 26:

difficile et ambiguum,

Vulg. Deut. 17, 8:

haud ambiguus rex, i. e. sine dubio rex futurus,

Liv. 40, 8.— Subst.: ambĭgŭum, i, n., doubt, uncertainty:

in ambiguo est,

Plaut. Trin. 2, 4, 193:

in ambiguo relinquere,

Lucr. 4, 1133: non habui ambiguum, Brut. ap. Cic. Fam. 11, 11:

servet in ambiguo Juppiter,

Hor. Ep. 1, 16, 28:

non sane alias magis in ambiguo Britannia fuit,

Tac. Agr. 5.—Also in acc. absol. in the Gr. manner: Ambiguum Clymene precibus Phaëthontis an irā Mota magis, it being uncertain whether, etc., Ov. M. 1, 765 (so, incertum, Tac. Agr. 7:

dubium,

id. A. 1, 5 ).—

B.

Of discourse, obscure, dark, ambiguous:

scriptum,

Cic. Top. 25:

verba ambigua distinximus,

id. Or. 29, 102:

oracula,

id. Div. 2, 56:

responsa,

Suet. Tib. 24:

divinatio,

Vulg. Ezech. 12, 24.— Subst.: ambĭgŭum, i, n., an obscure, dark saying:

ambiguorum complura sunt genera,

Cic. de Or. 2, 26, 111; 2, 61, 250; Auct. ad Her. 1, 6; 1, 12 al.:

voces,

Verg. A. 2, 98.—

C.

Trop., uncertain, wavering; not to be relied on, untrustworthy. —So of moral conduct:

esse ambiguā fide,

Liv. 6, 2:

puer acris ingenii sed ambigui,

Plin. Ep. 4, 2:

femina bonis atque honestis moribus, non ambiguā pudicitiā,

Gell. 3, 16:

per ambiguas vias,

Ov. H. 10, 62:

domum timet ambiguam Tyriosque bilinguis,

Verg. A 1, 661.—Of fortune, changing, fluctuating: ambiguarum rerum sciens, Tac. A. 1, 64.

► In Tac.

with gen.:

ambiguus imperandi,

irresolute, Tac. A. 1, 7:

pudoris ac metus,

wavering between shame and fear, id. ib. 2, 40:

futuri,

id. H. 3, 43.— Adv.: ambĭguē, doubtfully, ambiguously, Cic. de Or. 2, 26; id. N. D. 1, 31; Aur. Vict. 35:

pugnare,

with doubtful success, Tac. A. 2, 21 al.