ambivalence

/æmˈbɪvələns/

Say it: am-BIV-uh-lence

noun The state of having simultaneous, conflicting feelings, beliefs, or motivations toward a person, object, or action.
She felt a deep ambivalence about the promotion; she wanted the responsibility but dreaded the long hours.

📖 Seen in the wild

Her ambivalence about moving to a new city stemmed from both excitement for new opportunities and sadness about leaving friends.
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✏️ ambivalence in a sentence

The novel is a masterpiece of moral ambivalence, refusing to cast any character as purely good or evil.
I'm experiencing a lot of ambivalence about moving to a new city—I'm excited for the change but sad to leave my friends.
Voter ambivalence could be a deciding factor in the upcoming election, with many feeling uninspired by either candidate.
His ambivalence about the new policy was clear; he praised its goals but criticized its methods.
There is a profound ambivalence at the heart of our relationship with technology, which both connects and isolates us.
He looked at the dessert menu with ambivalence, torn between his diet and his sweet tooth.

🔁 Synonyms & antonyms

uncertainty indecision doubt equivocation hesitation wavering irresolution conflict

uncertainty · suggests a lack of knowledge, whereas ambivalence is about having conflicting feelings despite knowing the facts.

indecision · focuses on the inability to make a choice, which is often a result of ambivalence.

doubt · implies a lack of belief or confidence, while ambivalence is about holding two opposing beliefs at once.

equivocation · describes the use of ambiguous language to conceal the truth, which is an external act, not an internal state like ambivalence.

Opposites: certainty, conviction, decisiveness, assurance

🌱 Where it comes from

The word was borrowed from the German 'Ambivalenz', a term coined in the early 1900s by Swiss psychoanalyst Eugen Bleuler. He built it from the Latin prefix 'ambi-', meaning 'on both sides', and 'valentia', meaning 'strength'. The word's origin perfectly captures its meaning: having strength or powerful feelings on both sides of an issue.

🧩 How it's used

Common patterns:

a sense of ambivalencefeel ambivalence towardmoral ambivalenceexpress ambivalencedeep ambivalence

A common mistake is to confuse ambivalence with indifference. Ambivalence means you care a great deal, but in two opposing directions at once. Indifference means you do not care at all. The word is also more formal than simply saying you have 'mixed feelings', making it suitable for academic, professional, and literary contexts.

Word family: ambivalent

💬 Quick answers

What does ambivalence mean in simple terms?

It means having strong but conflicting feelings about the same thing. For example, you might love and hate your job at the same time.

What's the difference between ambivalence and indifference?

Ambivalence is feeling two opposing things strongly, like love and hate. Indifference is feeling nothing at all. Ambivalence means caring in conflicting ways, while indifference means not caring.

Is 'ambivalence' a negative word?

Not inherently. It describes a neutral state of internal conflict or complexity. While the feeling itself can be uncomfortable, the word simply names that experience without judgment.

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