Word of the day · 6 July 2026
ambivalent
/æmˈbɪvələnt/
adjective
Having mixed or conflicting feelings about something at the same time.
In a sentence
- She felt ambivalent about leaving a city she both loved and outgrew.
- Voters were ambivalent: they wanted change and feared the cost.
- His ambivalent reply pleased neither side of the family.
In an image
Origin
Coined in German (Ambivalenz) by psychologist Eugen Bleuler from Latin ambi- (both) and valentia (strength), then adopted into English.
History
Ambivalent began in early twentieth-century psychology for simultaneous opposing feelings. Ordinary English soon used it for conflicted attitudes toward people, jobs and choices. It differs from indifferent: you care in two directions at once. That precision is why the word still earns its place in careful prose.
Nearby words
conflicted · torn · mixed
Pulled both ways, not merely unsure for lack of facts.