Written Assignment - Ambiguity

1. The following sentences have lexical ambiguity.

Identify the ambiguous word or phrase and paraphrase the two different meanings.

1. The rabbi married my sister.

married: 1. performed marriage ceremony; 2. entered into matrimony with

2. Jane sits home while Tarzan swings.

swings: 1. moves back and forth; 2. carries on; has a good time

3. Peter found a bat.

bat: 1. baseball bat; 2. flying mammal

Now give an example of your own lexical ambiguity.

4. ________________________________________________________________

B. The following sentences are syntactically ambiguous. Show the ambiguity by bracketing the sentence in two different ways. Note that punctuation has been purposely omitted. The first example has been done for you.

5. The old men and women stayed at home.

The [old men] and [women] stayed at home.

The [old [men and women]] stayed at home.

6. When Charlie approaches the girls don't pay any attention to him.

[When Charlie approaches] [the girls don't pay any attention to him]

[When Charlie approaches the girls][don't pay any attention to him]

7. Wherever Doug goes racing is illegal.

[Wherever Doug goes][racing is illegal].

[Wherever Doug goes racing][ is illegal].

8. They fed her rat poison.

[They fed her][rat poison]

[They fed her rat][poison]

9. They saw the woman with the telescope.

[They saw the woman][ with the telescope]

[They saw][ the woman with the telescope]

C. The following sentences are syntactically ambiguous. Illustrate the ambiguity by means of paraphrases. Add or delete words as necessary.

The first example has been done for you.

The old men and women stayed at home.
The old men and the women stayed at home.
The old men and the old women stayed at home.

5. Eleanor took Theodore's pants off.
   Eleanor took Theodore's pants off of herself.
   Eleanor took Theodore's pants off of him.
6. Visiting relatives can be boring.
   It can be boring to visit relatives.
   Relatives who visit can be boring.
7. Harry loves his pet turtle more than his wife.
   Harry loves his pet turtle more than (he loves) his wife.
   Harry loves his pet turtle more than his wife (does).
8. Georg made Frank wash his face.
   George made Frank wash his (George's) face.
   George made Frank wash his (Frank's) face.
   George made Frank wash his (some other guy's) face.

2. The following examples are phonologically ambiguous when read aloud. For each example write the sentence with the other meaning.

(These all involve homophonous words; they are pronounced the same but spelled differently.) The first one has been done for you.

0. Bambi is a little deer.

(Bambi is a little dear.))

1. Mary's feat [feet] made the Guiness World Book of Records.
2. At the annual 4-H fruit judging contest everyone admired Helen's pear [pair].

Return to Linguistics 105 home page.