1. Ambiguity in translation refers to words, terms or concepts that have more than one possible meaning. This can cause unclear or misleading interpretations when translating between languages. 2. Some common causes of ambiguity include pronouns without clear referents, words with multiple meanings, and syntactic structures that can have more than one interpretation. 3. There are two main types of ambiguity - lexical, which occurs with individual words, and structural, which occurs with phrases or sentences that can have multiple syntactic structures. Identifying and addressing ambiguity is an important part of accurate translation.

1. U n iv e rs it y o f G a ry o u n is
F a c u lt y o f A rt
E n g lis h D e p a rt m e n t
T ra n s la t io n S e c t io n
S o m e P ro b le m s O f A m b ig u it y I n
T r a n s la t io n :W it h R e f e re n c e
t o E n g li s h – A ra b ic
By :
S u n d o s I s m a il A L -s h e rk a s y 45324
&
Istabraq Ismail AL-sherkasy 45309
Supervisor : Dr. Ramadan AL-Mjrab
Academic year 2009-2010

2. Thank You
For all the things we have done …….
For all success we get through …..
For the hard and good times …
There's always one helping us in true …
Now it's our time to speak ..to write ..
To thank the one who helping us indeed …
O , Allah no matter what we tell …
We never could imagine how the life be
without you …
We say our grateful and thanks
To the only God in the universe
Allah …..
2

3. Introduction
Translation is the comprehension of the meaning of a text and the subsequent
production of an equivalent text, that communicates the same message in another
language.
The text to be translated is called the source text, and the language that it is to
be translated into is called the target language; the final product is sometimes called the
target text ,there are several useful definitions of translation , but probably the most
workable one is the following : Translation is replacing a text in one language by
another text in another language . Firstly , it is based on text-translation . Secondly , the
definition involves two languages , which is translation proper . Replacing a text by
another text in the same language is often termed rewording or interpretation .
Translation proper is always between two languages . A text may appear in several
languages but basically every time the process of translation is practiced it takes place
between two languages only also translation defined as ; it is an intellectual and
intuitive operation which requires the translator to decode the meaning before re-
encoding it in another form. It depends as much on translator understanding and
judgment of the source language text as in the target language text. Translation
produces a result, a new text, which should be able to stand independently of the source
text which generated it, That translation as an excise (Introduction to Translation :
2004) . And translation for Peter Newmark is :
“translation is not merely a dualistic process. It has to take account of five
medial factors: ethics, reality, logic, ‘pure language’ and aesthetics , of which only aes-
thetics is not exclusively universal "
3

4. And a text is a linguistic unit which is higher than a sentence , and consists of
one sentence or more . It is highly dependent on the context , and maybe oral or written.
Moreover some of the modern theories of translation , namely deconstruction , have
rejected the idea of equivalence between the source text and the target text (Gentzler ,
1993 , 144 ) .
Equivalence is considered essential for translation. For a text to be
considered a translation of another it must be equivalent in one way or another to the
original ; otherwise it not qualify as translated text . The most common , but not the
only, basis for equivalence is meaning. The translated text is said to be equivalent to the
source text in meaning . This implies that the proposition that they express is it same ..
Ambiguity can be defined as a word, phrase, or sentence is ambiguous if it
has more than one meaning. The word 'light', for example, can mean not very heavy or
not very dark. The notion of ambiguity has philosophical applications.
For example, identifying an ambiguity can aid in solving a philosophical
problem. Suppose one wonders how two people can have the same idea, say of a
unicorn. This can seem puzzling until one distinguishes 'idea' in the sense of a particular
psychological occurrence, a mental representation, from 'idea' in the sense of an
abstract, shareable concept. On the other hand, gratuitous claims of ambiguity can make
for overly simple solutions. Accordingly, the question arises of how genuine
ambiguities can be distinguished from spurious ones. Part of the answer consists in
identifying phenomena with which ambiguity may be confused, such as vagueness,
unclarity, inexplicitness and indexicality .
Ambiguity is, strictly speaking, a property of linguistic expressions.
Obviously this definition does not say what meanings are or what it is for an expression
to have one (or more than one). For a particular language, this information is provided
4

5. by a grammar, which systematically pairs forms with meanings, ambiguous forms with
more than one meaning (see meaning and semantics).
Ambiguity in main aspect is the property of words, terms, notations,
signs, symbols, and concepts (within a particular context) as being undefined,
indefinable, multi-defined, or without an obvious definition, and thus having a
misleading, or unclear, meaning. A word, phrase, sentence, or other communication is
called “ambiguous” if it can be interpreted in more than one way. Ambiguity is distinct
from vagueness, which arises when the boundaries of meaning are indistinct.
Ambiguity is in contrast with definition, and typically refers to an unclear
choice between standard definitions, as given by a dictionary, or else understood
as common knowledge.
If opposed to ‘clarity’, ambiguity would be considered a fault. Modernist
criticism turned it into a virtue, equivalent roughly to ‘richness’ or ‘wit’. This reversal
of normal connotations was made possible by two factors: I. A. Richards’s argument
that what is required of scientific language (e.g. lucidity) is not necessarily demanded in
poetry (see language); and William Empson’s promotion of the concept in Seven Types
of Ambiguity, first published in 1930. Following Empson, ambiguity came to be
regarded as a defining linguistic characteristic of poetry.
Ambiguity is not a specific figurative device which may be chosen at will for
decoration; it is not, says Empson, ‘a thing to be attempted’. Rather, it is a
natural characteristic of language which becomes heightened and significant in verse.
The link between content and form is indirect and arbitrary; hence syntactic ‘accidents’
may occur, syntax realizing two or more meanings in the same signal. Linguists say that
one ‘surface structure’ may conceal two or more ‘deep structures’ (the reverse situation
is PARAPHRASE). Ambiguity is common in ordinary language, but we do not notice it
because context usually selects just one of the alternative meanings (‘disambiguates’).
5

6. First thing we want to talk about is" the causes of Ambiguity :
There are plenty of things that leads or causes "Ambiguity" either in a sentence ,
in word or in others here are some of them :
* Using a pronoun without making clear who or what the referent is, for example,
"Tom called his father last night. They talked for an hour. He said he would be home
the next day."
It is not clear whether "He" is referring to Tom or his father.
And here the Arabic translator have just two ways to translate the sentence either by
making the pronoun "He" refer to the father
‫ا ما‬ ‫ل‬ ‫دإ ا‬ ‫ل‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ا‬ ‫و‬ ‫ا‬ ‫م ا‬ ‫ا‬
or to Tom ..
‫ا ما‬ ‫ل‬ ‫دإ ا‬ ‫و لا‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ا‬ ‫و‬ ‫ا‬ ‫م ا‬ ‫ا‬
and sure on of them will change the meaning completely ….
or
"I arrived at the airport and greeted my family. They had been waiting there for over an
hour. It is very complicated."
It is not clear what "it" is referring to in the sentence "It is very complicated." This
must be explained more clearly in the sentence, for example,
"Returning home to see my family is always very complicated because my parents are
6

7. divorced and do not have a relationship with each other, but I have a close relationship
with each of them."
There are, of course, other reasons for ambiguity.
1. Factors Leading to English Ambiguity
It should be admitted that many factors might lead to English ambiguity.
Modern linguists tend to believe that English ambiguity is embodied in four aspects in
terms of linguistics. i.e., phonology, lexicology, syntax and
pragmatics.
1.1 Phonological Factor
Here it refers to the juncture, one of the phonological terminologies, the
transition from one sound to another in speech.
When people speak, one phoneme glides to another one, during which
different combinations are produced, leading to different meanings. For example,
My younger brother had a / greidei /
The sentence can be heard in two different ways
(a) My younger brother had a grade A.
(b) My younger brother had a gray day.
During the communication, although the ambiguity caused by different
junctures is not easily eliminated, proper stop can be used to make clear what the
speaker wants to express.
7

8. 1.2 Lexical Factors
(1) Polysemy
Once a word, which has more than one meaning, appears in the sentence,
ambiguity tends to happen. It is also called polysemy, which may exist in nouns,
verbs, adjectives etc., for example,
(A) I went to the bank.
bank (a) land sloping up along side of a river or canal
(b) establishment for keeping money, valuables
The Arabic translator will choose from this two :
‫ا‬ ‫أ ( ذه‬
‫ف‬ ‫ب( ذه‬
(B) She couldn’t bear children.
Bear (a) endure (sth); tolerate; stand;
(b) give birth to.
‫ل‬ ‫ا‬ (‫ا‬
‫ل‬ ‫إ بأ‬ (‫ب‬
The italic words in the two sentences(A), (B) mentioned
above have more than one meaning, so there is more than one way to explain
them. To figure out the exact meanings of such words, it demands
language-learners’ careful consideration of specific context. Especially, when
reading the books on literature, it requires more attention on the purpose
of the author as well as the communicational situation. Only in this way
can language-learners do a good job in disambiguation.
8

9. (2) Parts of Speech
If a word can be used as different parts of speech, we always call it a
multifunctional word. The sentence containing such words easily presents different
deeper structures, then causing different comprehensions, i.e.
(A) The doctor saw the Indian dance.
Indian (a) adj. “Indian” modifies “dance”
(b) n. “Indian” refers to “a specific person”
‫ي‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ه ا‬ ‫أ(ا‬
‫ي‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ه ا ا‬ ‫ب( ا‬
In English, present or past participles are always confused with adjectives,
verbs, which then cause ambiguity, i.e.
(B) She is calculating.
‫ا( ه‬
(‫) آ ة‬ ‫ب( ه أ‬
Functioning as “present participle”, “calculating” means “working out by
using numbers or one’s judgment”. The sentence describes that the action is taking
place.
Functioning as “adjective”, “calculating” means “selfish, scheming, or shrewd”.
The sentence depicts characteristics of a person.
1.3 Syntactical Factor
9

10. Syntactically, sentences are made up of phrases; phrases are made up of
words. Thus, there exists a kind of syntactic relation, i.e., a hierarchical relation. Such a
relation shows the inner layers of sentences. The way the words are arranged
hierarchically has an important role in determining the meaning. It is also because of
this that the ambiguity is produced. IC Analysis (Immediate Constituent Analysis)
proposed by Leonard Bloomfield can be used to reveal the hierarchical structure of a
sentence. Take the following for instance:
( old men and women)
It means “old men and old women” if we regard old as a modifier of both
men and women; or “women and old men” if we think old is a modifier of men but not
of women. The ambiguity can be captured by two different hierarchical structures.
old men and old women old men and old women
old men and woman
Old men and woman
‫ن‬ ‫وا أة‬ ‫ب( ر‬ ‫وا أة‬ ‫ا( ر‬
Types of Ambiguity
Although people are sometimes said to be ambiguous in how they use
language, ambiguity is, strictly speaking, a property of linguistic expressions.
10

11. A word, phrase, or sentence is ambiguous if it has more than one meaning.
Obviously this definition does not say what meanings are or what it is for an expression
to have one (or more than one). For a particular language, this information is provided
by a grammar, which systematically pairs forms with meanings, ambiguous forms with
more than one meaning .
There are two types of ambiguity, lexical and structural. Lexical ambiguity is
by far the more common. Everyday examples include nouns like 'chip', 'pen' and 'suit',
verbs like 'call', 'draw' and 'run', and adjectives like 'deep', 'dry' and 'hard'. There are
various tests for ambiguity. One test is having two unrelated antonyms, as with 'hard',
which has both 'soft' and 'easy' as opposites. Another is the conjunction reduction test.
Consider the sentence, 'The tailor pressed one suit in his shop and one in the municipal
court'.
Evidence that the word 'suit' (not to mention 'press') is ambiguous is provided
by the anomaly of the 'crossed interpretation' of the sentence, on which 'suit' is used to
refer to an article of clothing and 'one' to a legal action.
The above examples of ambiguity are each a case of one word with more than
one meaning. However, it is not always clear when we have only one word. The verb
'desert' and the noun 'dessert', which sound the same but are spelled differently, count as
distinct words (they are homonyms). So do the noun 'bear' and the verb 'bear', even
though they not only sound the same but are spelled the same. These examples may be
clear cases of homonymy, but what about the noun 'respect' and the verb 'respect' or the
preposition 'over' and the adjective 'over'? Are the members of these pairs homonyms or
different forms of the same word? There is no general consensus on how to draw the
line between cases of one ambiguous word and cases of two homonymous words.
Perhaps the difference is ultimately arbitrary.
Lexical semantics has the task of identifying and characterizing such
systematic phemena. It is also concerned to explain the rich and subtle semantic
11

12. behavior of common and highly flexible words like the verbs 'do' and 'put' and the
prepositions 'at', 'in' and 'to'. Each of these words has uses which are so numerous yet so
closely related that they are often described as 'polysemous' rather than ambiguous.
Structural ambiguity occurs when a phrase or sentence has more than one
underlying structure, such as the sentences 'The girl hit the boy with a book' and
'Visiting relatives can be boring'. This ambiguity is said to be structural because such a
phrase can be represented in two structurally different ways .
It is not always clear when we have a case of structural ambiguity. Consider,
for example, the elliptical sentence, 'Perot knows a richer man than Trump'. It has two
meanings, that Perot knows a man who is richer than Trump and that Perot knows man
who is richer than any man Trump knows, and is therefore ambiguous. But what about
the sentence 'John loves his mother and so does Bill'? It can be used to say either that
John loves John's mother and Bill loves Bill's mother or
that John loves John's mother and Bill loves John's mother.
But is it really ambiguous? One might argue that the clause 'so does Bill' is
unambiguous and may be read unequivocally as saying in the context that Bill does the
same thing that John does, and although there are two different possibilities for what
counts as doing the same thing, these alternatives are not fixed semantically. Hence the
ambiguity is merely apparent and better described as semantic under determination.
Clear Examples of Ambiguity :
Any sentence with two or more structural representations is said to be
syntactically or in some way ambiguous. Ambiguity, having more than one meaning,
12

13. may be a result of syntax or of semantics.
Semantic ambiguity depends on the meaning of a word or words which
themselves can be misinterpreted.
Syntactic ambiguity means that the grammatical construction of the phrase or
sentence brings about the misinterpretation - the word order or the fact that a word
could be either a noun or a verb
Ambiguity In spoken language
a) I promise I'll give you a ring tomorrow.
Although uncommon in American dialects, "giving someone a ring" can
simply mean calling them on the telephone. But, obviously, the above sentence can also
mean giving someone a piece of jewelry worn on the finger. The statement is, therefore,
ambiguous.
b) I know a man with a dog who has fleas
it is unclear - ambiguous - whether it is the man or the dog who has fleas. It is
the syntax not the meaning of the words which is unclear.
To clarify the meaning or meanings of an ambiguous sentence we can gloss
the meaning (express it in a different form of words) or use grammatical terminology to
explain the functions of the words and the structure of the sentence.
c) "Mine Exploded"
the gloss could be either "the object belonging to me exploded" or "the
explosive device exploded".
13

14. Grammatically we can say that the first meaning has a structure of first person
possessive pronoun + verb while the second meaning is noun + verb.
Ambiguity In written and read language
The term ambiguity can be defined as a statement that contains two or more
meanings, or a statement that is unclear. One may think that ambiguity in writing would
be a bad thing, but it really depends on the subject matter. Ambiguity can be used as a
literary device to effectively strengthen your writing in several ways.
Ambiguity is a great way to open a story, as well. By offering a confusing
statement, or one that seems to contradict itself, the writer can draw the reader in by
creating interest or mystery. Often the ambiguity will be cleared by the end of the piece
of writing, but it is the initial confusion that can create conflict or interest.
An example of ambiguity in the opening of a piece of writing is one of the
most famous first lines of any novel, "A Tale of Two Cities" by Charles Dickens: "It
was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age
of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the
season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the
winter of despair."
These contradictory statements create a sense of ambiguity which draws the
reader into the story.
In writing, being concise and clear is key to conveying meaning to the reader,
but using ambiguity effectively can be used to strengthen a piece of writing.
Or in newspaper headlines below
14

15. FREE WALES
from whom?
FREE WALES
with every five gallons
WET PAINT
this is not an instruction
BILL STICKERS WILL BE PROSECUTED
Bill Stickers is innocent
Or as in the eve of George Bush's visit to the UK in November 2003 Ceefax posted
the following headline:
GIANT POLICE EXERCISE TO GUARD BUSH
15

16. Practical Part
Analysis of the Translated sentences :
1) ST : Police squad help dog bite victim .
S t u d e n t s t ra n s la t io n s
a) . ‫يا‬ ‫و‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ت‬
b) . ‫ا‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ت‬
c) . ‫طا‬ ‫ةا‬ ‫و‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ز ة‬
d) . ‫ا‬ ‫ا ي‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ا‬
e) . ‫ا‬ ‫ا ي‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ا‬
f) . ‫ا‬ ‫ا‬ ‫با‬ ‫تا‬
g) . ‫م‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ا‬
Comment :
This statement includes structural ambiguity . It may be translated as
‫ا‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ا‬
which is similar to the Student's translation in (a) , (b) , (d) , (e) … furthermore ,
students (c) , (f) and (g) aren't adequate .
====================================================================
2) ST : The man saw the boy with binoculars .
S t u d e n t s t ra n s la t io n s :
a) ‫ا‬ ‫ا ي‬ ‫ا‬ ‫رأى ا‬
b) ‫ر‬ ‫رأى ا‬ ‫ا‬
c) ‫ر‬ ‫ا‬ ‫رأى ا‬
d) ‫را‬ ‫ا ي‬ ‫ا‬ ‫رأى ا‬
e) ‫ا‬ ‫و‬ ‫رأى ا‬ ‫ا‬
16

17. f) ‫رأى ا‬ ‫ا‬
g) ‫ر‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ه ا‬
Comment :
This sentence indicates structure ambiguity , it has two meanings ; firstly
Which is similar to students translation (a), (d), (e) and (g)
‫اب‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ا ي‬ ‫ا‬ ‫رأى ا‬
secondly ; it can be translated as
‫ر‬ ‫ا‬ ‫رأي ا‬
And that is similar to translation (b) .
3) ST: The police were ordered to stop drinking after midnight .
S t u d e n t s t ra n s la t io n s :
a) ‫ا‬ ‫ا ب‬ ‫ع‬ ‫و أوا‬
b) ‫ا‬ ‫ا ب‬ ‫أ ت‬ ‫ا‬
c) ‫ا‬ ‫ا‬ ‫أ تا‬
d) ‫ا‬ ‫ا اب ا‬ ‫أ تا‬
e) ‫ا‬ ‫ا ب‬ ‫أن‬ ‫ا‬
f) ‫ا‬ ‫ا ب‬ ‫أ‬ ‫أ رت ا‬
Comment :
Here there is structural ambiguity in the sentence either it mean
. ‫ا‬ ‫ات‬ ‫با‬ ‫أ ت‬ ‫ا‬
Or
. ‫ا‬ ‫ل‬ ‫ءا‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ع‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ض‬
Most of the translated statements were meant to be translated as the first one . the
second possible translated can only be an option if it was passive .
====================================================================
17

18. 4) ST :They are hunting dogs
S t u d e n t s t ra n s la t io n s :
a) ‫دون ا ب‬ ‫ه ء‬
b) ‫دون ا ب‬
c) ‫ا ب‬ ‫ن‬
d) ‫ردون ا ب‬ ‫إ‬
e) ‫ا ب‬ ‫ا‬
f) ‫دوا ا ب‬
g) ‫نا با‬
Comment :
And here is semantic ambiguity and it can translate as
‫ ه ء آ ب‬Or ‫دون ا ب‬ ‫أ‬
Most of the students translated this one as the first translation , except the last one
which is incorrect.
5) ST : The chicken is ready to eat .
S t u d e n t s t ra n s la t io n s :
a) ‫ا ج ه‬
b) ‫ه ة آ‬ ‫ا‬
c) ‫آ‬ ‫ا ج ه‬
d) ‫ا ج ه‬
Comment :
This statement contain a semantic ambiguity . it more adequate to translated as
. ‫آ‬ ‫ا ج‬
All of the translated sentences translate this one as passive whereas in common passive
form it be '' the chicken is ready to be eaten '' . but those translation could be correct too
if it was passive .
====================================================
6) ST: While the man was hunting the dear ran through the forest .
S t u d e n t s t ra n s la t io n s :
18

19. a) ‫د‬ ‫آن‬ ‫ا‬ ، ‫ا‬ ‫ال‬ ‫أ عا‬
b) ‫د ا ال إ ا‬ ‫ا‬
c) ‫د‬ ‫آنا‬ ‫ال ه ب إ ا‬ ‫ا‬
d) ‫رد ا ال ه ب إ ا‬ ‫ا‬
Comment :
This one is semantic ambiguity it maybe understood by two different meanings one is
. ‫د‬ ‫ول ا‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ه ع ا ال إ ا‬
And the other meaning is
. ‫د ا ال‬ ‫آن‬ ‫إ ا‬ ‫أ عا‬
Translation (a) ,(c) are similar to the first adequate translation , whereas the other two
translation by the students translated literally without solving the ambiguity .
====================================================================
7) ST: A sailor was dancing with a wooden leg
S t u d e n t s t ra n s la t io n s :
a) ‫ق‬ ‫آنا ر‬
b) ‫ا‬ ‫ا رآن‬
c) ‫ق‬ ‫ر‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ر‬
d) ‫ر‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ا ر‬
e) ‫ا‬
f) ‫ا‬ ‫ا ر ذو ا‬
Comment :
This statement have structural ambiguity so it understood in more than one meaning
First meaning could be . ‫ا‬ ‫آنا ر‬
And the other possible meaning is
. ‫د‬ ‫ا ر‬ ‫ر‬
But all of the student translated it as the first are except student (e) who translated it as
the second one .
===================================================================
8) ST :The criminal experienced a seizure.
S t u d e n t s t ra n s la t io n s :
a) ‫ء‬ ‫ما‬ ‫فا‬ ‫ا‬
19

20. b) ‫ء‬ ‫ا‬ ‫م‬ ‫ا‬
c) ‫ء‬ ‫ة ا‬ ‫م‬ ‫ا‬
d) ‫ء‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ا‬
e) ‫ا‬ ‫با‬ ‫ا‬
f) ‫ما‬ ‫ا‬
Comment :
Here it's semantic ambiguity and also have two possible meanings , one
. ‫م‬ ‫ا‬
Or
.‫م‬ ‫زا‬ ‫ا‬
==================================================================
9) ST: The girl hit the boy with a book
S t u d e n t s t ra n s la t io n s :
a) ‫ب‬ ‫ا ةا‬
b) ‫ا ب‬ ‫ا ا ي‬ ‫ا‬
c) ‫ب‬ ‫ا‬ ‫با‬
d) ‫ب‬ ‫ا ةا‬
Comment :
This sentence includes structural ambiguity whereas the first possible meaning is
.‫ا ب‬ ‫ا ا ا ي‬
As it translated correctly by the student (b) , and the other meaning as the rest of student
translate it
‫ب‬ ‫ا ةا‬
==============================================================
10) ST : We saw The Eiffel Tower flying from London to Paris .
S t u d e n t s t ra n s la t io n s :
a) ‫ر‬ ‫نإ‬ ‫جإ‬ ‫رأ‬
b) ‫ر‬ ‫نإ‬ ‫جإ‬ ‫رأ‬
c) ‫ر‬ ‫نإ‬ ‫جإ‬ ‫رأ‬
20

21. d) ‫ر‬ ‫نإ‬ ‫جإ‬ ‫رأ‬
Comment :
In here its semantic ambiguity first meaning is
. ‫جإ‬ ‫ر رأ‬ ‫نإ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ةا‬ ‫ا‬ ‫و‬
Or
. ‫ر‬ ‫نإ‬ ‫ة جإ‬ ‫رأ‬
And most of students translation eat to be the first translation .
====================================================================
ST sentences taken from :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_linguistic_example_sentences
21

22. Conclusion
As it has been started in this paper , the definition of translation as it is
the comprehension of the meaning of a text and the subsequent production of an
equivalent text, that communicates the same message in another language .
Follows that the definition of ambiguity term as a word, phrase, or
sentence becomes ambiguous if it has more than one direct meaning in the context.
This paper shed the light on the causes and what are the main factors behind
creating ambiguity in a text . Ambiguity can be attributed to Phonological ,
Lexical and Syntactical factors . Lexical type when the ambiguity is in non-
choosing the more adequate word. And structural ambiguity when it is deals with
the syntax of the statement (structure of the sentence ). Finally, this paper gives
clear examples of ambiguity in different language usage .
22

23. Bibliography
- Peter Newmark, (2004), Introduction to Translation.
- Gentzler , (1993) , 144.
- J.M Cohen (1983) " The Translator's Endless Toil " , Christopher kasparek ,
The Polish Review , Vol , xxvIII , no.2, ,pp.84-87 .
- J.M Cohen (1986) "Translation " , Encyclopedia Americana , Vol.27 , p.12.
- Andrew .Wilson (2009) Translators on Translating : Inside The Art . ccsp
press: Vancouver.
- Snell-Hornby , M.(2006) . The Turns of Translation Studies : New Paradigms
or Shifting View Points ? Philadelphia : John Benjamins , p.133
- Hutchins , W.J.(2000) , Early Years in Machine Translation : Memoirs and
Biographs of Pioneers , Amsterdam : John Benjamins
- Ambiguity and Rationality , Jonathan Baron .15 of February , journal of
Behavioral Decision Marking , http://www.interscience.wiley.com/maintenance.html
- Some Structural Ambiguities , Norman C. stagerberg 13 . feb . 2010
- Interview with Peter Newmark , Pioneering Theovetion in Scientific
Translation , David Shea . www.medtrad.orglpanacea.html
- Kent Bach , Rowledge Encyclopedia of philosophy entry.26.Nov.2009
23

24. - Ambiguous Grammar www.translationdirectory.com/articles/article1868.php.
24