Word
ambivalence
Phoneticsam·biva·lence
US/æmˈbɪvəɫəns/
UK/æmbˈɪvələns/
Definitions
01mixed feelings
n. having two opposite feelings at once, like liking and disliking something at the same time.
n. the simultaneous existence of contradictory feelings or attitudes, such as love and hate, toward the same subject.
“She felt a lot of ambivalence about moving to a new city for work.”
“The protagonist's ambivalence toward his father is the central theme of the novel, driving much of the internal conflict in the later chapters.”
Academic
Pitfall
I have ambivalence for my new job.
I feel ambivalence about my new job.
Use the preposition 'about' or 'toward' to describe the object of your mixed feelings.
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02indecision
n. a state of being uncertain or unable to make a choice because you see both good and bad sides.
n. a state of uncertainty or indecisiveness characterized by an inability to choose between two distinct courses of action.
“His ambivalence kept him from signing the contract for several weeks.”
“The committee's ambivalence regarding the proposed budget cuts led to a prolonged stalemate during the final round of negotiations.”
Academic
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Real-World Examples
“I don't know anymore."
It's easy to understand his ambivalence.” “The close shot of Pickford’s stony expression intimately conveys the character’s ambivalence about her final decision.” Etymology
Borrowed from German Ambivalenz (“simultaneous conflicting feelings”), from Latin ambi- (“both”) and valentia (“strength”), from the verb valere (“to be strong”) (see valiant); spelled on the model of French-origin words ending in -ence. The German term was coined by Swiss psychiatrist Eugen Bleuler in 1910; by 1929, it had taken on a broader literary and general sense. Equivalent to ambi- + valence.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
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englishreference.com/q/ambivalence