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7 results for: ambivalence

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
am·biv·a·lence    Audio Help   [am-biv-uh-luhns] Pronunciation Key
–noun
1.uncertainty or fluctuation, esp. 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 him or her in opposite directions.
Also, am·biv·a·len·cy.

[Origin: 1910–15; ambi- + valence]

—Related forms
am·biv·a·lent, adjective
am·biv·a·lent·ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
ambivalence

To learn more about ambivalence visit Britannica.com

© 2008 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
am·biv·a·lence    Audio Help   (ām-bĭv'ə-ləns)  Pronunciation Key 
n.  
  1. The coexistence of opposing attitudes or feelings, such as love and hate, toward a person, object, or idea.
  2. Uncertainty or indecisiveness as to which course to follow.


[German Ambivalenz : Latin ambi-, ambi- + Latin valentia, vigor (from valēns, valent-, present participle of valēre, to be strong; see wal- in Indo-European roots).]

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
ambivalence 
"simultaneous conflicting feelings," 1924, from Ger. Ambivalenz, coined 1910 by Ger. psychologist Eugen Bleuler (on model of equivalence, etc.) from L. ambi- "both" + valentia "strength," from prp. of valere "be strong" (see valiant). A psychological term that by 1929 had taken on a broader literary and general sense. Ambivalent first recorded 1916.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
ambivalence

noun
mixed feelings or emotions 

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
American Heritage Stedman's Medical Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

am·biv·a·lence (m-bv-lns)
n.

The coexistence of opposing attitudes or feelings toward a person, an object, or an idea.
am·biva·lent adj.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Main Entry: am·biv·a·lence
Pronunciation: am-'biv-&-l&n(t)s
Function: noun
: simultaneous and contradictory attitudes or feelings (as attraction and repulsion) toward an object, person, or action <a heightened ambivalence which is expressed in behavior by alternating obedience and rebellion, followed by self-reproach —G. S. Blum> —am·biv·a·lent /-l&nt/ adjective —am·biv·a·lent·ly adverb

Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.

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