ambivalence

noun

am·​biv·​a·​lence am-ˈbi-və-lən(t)s 

1

: simultaneous and contradictory attitudes or feelings (such as attraction and repulsion) toward an object, person, or action

felt ambivalence toward his powerful father

ambivalence toward marriage

2

a

: continual fluctuation (as between one thing and its opposite)

b

: uncertainty as to which approach to follow

ambivalence about their goals

Examples of ambivalence in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The sudden rise of Tyler Ballgame from the Eagle Rock scene is something Perry seems to feel some ambivalence about. —Jonathan Bernstein, Rolling Stone, 25 Mar. 2026

Laura, a piano student from Berlin, played with arresting ambivalence by Paula Beer, narrowly survives a car wreck that kills her boyfriend. —Holden Seidlitz, New Yorker, 20 Mar. 2026

Their response to the US president’s call for help to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the chokepoint for about a fifth of the world’s oil, has ranged from caution to ambivalence if not outright rejection. —Caroline Alexander, Bloomberg, 16 Mar. 2026

Trump’s own position toward the pope seemed to be one of respectful ambivalence. —Christopher Lamb, CNN Money, 14 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from German Ambivalenz, from ambi- ambi- + -valenz, in Äquivalenz equivalence

Note: See note at ambivalent.

First Known Use

1909, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for ambivalence

• equivalence

Medical Definition

ambivalence

noun

am·​biv·​a·​lence am-ˈbiv-ə-lən(t)s 

: simultaneous and contradictory attitudes or feelings (as attraction and repulsion) toward an object, person, or action

ambivalence which is expressed in behavior by alternating obedience and rebellion

—G. S. Blum

ambivalent

-lənt 

adjective

ambivalently adverb