Explore Equivocal through 10+ example sentences from English, with an explanation of the meaning and related words like ambiguous or double. Ideal for language learners, writers and word enthusiasts.
Equivocal in a sentence
Equivocal meaning
- Having two or more equally applicable meanings; capable of double or multiple interpretation.
- Capable of being ascribed to different motives, or of signifying opposite feelings, purposes, or characters; deserving to be suspected.
- Uncertain, as an indication or sign.
Synonyms of Equivocal
Using Equivocal
- The main meaning on this page is: Having two or more equally applicable meanings; capable of double or multiple interpretation. | Capable of being ascribed to different motives, or of signifying opposite feelings, purposes, or characters; deserving to be suspected. | Uncertain, as an indication or sign.
- Useful related words include: ambiguous, double, forked, evasive.
- In the example corpus, equivocal often appears in combinations such as: equivocal about, more equivocal, less equivocal.
Context around Equivocal
- Average sentence length in these examples: 21.6 words
- Position in the sentence: 2 start, 8 middle, 10 end
- Sentence types: 20 statements, 0 questions, 0 exclamations
Corpus analysis for Equivocal
- In this selection, "equivocal" usually appears near the end of the sentence. The average example has 21.6 words, and this corpus slice is mostly made up of statements.
- Around the word, less, proven, appearing, saying, position and response stand out and add context to how "equivocal" is used.
- Recognizable usage signals include administration s equivocal response to and after appearing equivocal about us. That gives this page its own corpus information beyond isolated example sentences.
- By corpus frequency, "equivocal" sits close to words such as abbe, abdollahian and abergavenny, which helps place it inside the broader word index.
Example types with equivocal
The same corpus examples are grouped by length and sentence type, making it easier to see the contexts in which the word appears:
Others, however, were less equivocal. (5 words)
His sense of direction was confused in his purposes were equivocal. (11 words)
But he’s proven equivocal on the sports betting issue in the past. (13 words)
The 45-year-old was caught in the eye of a storm last week after appearing equivocal about US Anti-Doping Agency's investigation into Alberto Salazar, the coach who was convicted of doping offences earlier this month. (38 words)
Corbyn’s offer of a radical agenda failed to win over voters, while his equivocal position on Brexit left many angry and confused, especially in Red Wall areas where large majorities had voted for Brexit in 2016. (37 words)
U.S. legislators from both parties remain incensed by the Trump administration’s equivocal response to the grisly killing last October by Saudi agents of Jamal Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist and Virginia resident. (34 words)
Example sentences (20)
Jonathan Rauch, an expert on democracy at the Brookings Institution, is less equivocal about ranked choice voting.
But he’s proven equivocal on the sports betting issue in the past.
BP Plc CEO Bernard Looney was more equivocal, saying his board would review the payout on a quarterly basis.
They would maybe be more equivocal about whether there should be certain religious symbols in public spaces.
And much like the tobacco companies that spent four decades denying a link between smoking and lung cancer, Facebook has been equivocal in acknowledging its own harmful effects.
Corbyn’s offer of a radical agenda failed to win over voters, while his equivocal position on Brexit left many angry and confused, especially in Red Wall areas where large majorities had voted for Brexit in 2016.
Others, however, were less equivocal.
The 45-year-old was caught in the eye of a storm last week after appearing equivocal about US Anti-Doping Agency's investigation into Alberto Salazar, the coach who was convicted of doping offences earlier this month.
U.S. legislators from both parties remain incensed by the Trump administration’s equivocal response to the grisly killing last October by Saudi agents of Jamal Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist and Virginia resident.
I’ve always felt that describing myself as “Jewish” was like rounding off the corners of my declaration and making it equivocal.
A 2009 review, whose co-authors included persons engaged in DDT-related litigation, reached broadly similar conclusions, with an equivocal association with testicular cancer.
Although it is equivocal about whether the official or unofficial version of the Andijan Massacre is true, the EU is evidently willing to ease its economic sanctions against Uzbekistan.
An equivocal statement is ineffective as a waiver and the police may not proceed with the interrogation until the suspect's intentions are made clear.
Chapman finds Cyril less equivocal and finds him upholding the doctrine of Transubstantiation.
Computational approaches provide a cheaper and faster alternative to crystallography, but their results are more equivocal, since they do not produce empirical structures.
Evidence for significant interactions with several other CYP1A2 substrates such as cyclosporine is equivocal or conflicting.
His sense of direction was confused in his purposes were equivocal.
Polk was a strong proponent of immediate annexation, while Clay seemed more equivocal and vacillating.
Psychologists have tested the hypothesis that fear of death motivates religious commitment, and assurances about an afterlife alleviate the fear and empirical research on this topic has been equivocal.
Similarly, weasel words is a critical term for words or phrasing that are vague, misleading or equivocal.
Common combinations with equivocal
These word pairs occur most frequently in English texts:
- equivocal about 4×
- more equivocal 4×
- less equivocal 3×
- been equivocal 3×
- an equivocal 3×
- is equivocal 3×
- equivocal and 3×
- equivocal on 2×