[a. Fr. amphibologie, ad. late L. amphibologia (Isidore), for earlier amphibolia (Cic.), a. Gr. ἀμφίβολία ambiguity, with the ending -logia, Gr. -λογία speech, by form-assoc. with tautologia, etc. Also found in the Latin form.]
1. = AMPHIBOLY 1.
c. 1374. Chaucer, Troylus, IV. 1406. For goddes speken in amphibologies, And for o soth, they tellen twenty lyes.
1552. Latimer, Serm. Lord’s Prayer, vii. II. 112. It is an amphibologia, and therefore Erasmus turneth it into Latin with such words.
1665. Glanvill, Sceps. Sci., 115. That the mind be not misled by amphibologies.
1751. Chambers, Cycl., s.v., The English language … is not so capable of any amphibologies of this kind.
1864. J. H. Newman, Apol. Vita, App. 86. Nothing is adduced … for the lawful use of Amphibologies.
2. = AMPHIBOLY 2.
1589. Puttenham, Eng. Poesie (Arb.), 267. Such ambiguous termes they call Amphibologia, we call it the ambiguous, figure of sence incertaine.
1646. Sir T. Browne, Pseud. Ep., 13. The fallacie of Æquivocation and Amphibologie.
1654. L’Estrange, Charles I., 7. Giving him a quaint wipe with the amphibology, the double-mindednesse of the word ‘dux.’
1870. Jevons, Elem. Logic, xx. 172. The fallacy of Amphibology consists in an ambiguous grammatical structure of a sentence which produces misconception.
