ambivalence means the coexistence of opposing attitudes or feelings (such as love and hate) towards a person, object or idea. Lexicurio rates it Rare gem — a strength score of 76 out of 100.
ambivalence is pronounced /æmˈbɪvələns/.
Why “ambivalence” is a great word
The simultaneous presence of strong, contradictory feelings or attitudes toward the same object. From Latin ambi- ("both") and valentia ("strength"), from valere ("to be strong"), it was coined in 1910 by Swiss psychiatrist Eugen Bleuler. Unlike "ambiguity" (which is a vagueness of meaning) or "indifference" (which is an absence of feeling), ambivalence is the agonizing fullness of two certainties at war. It is the taste of ash in a beloved’s kiss, the held breath before a door, and the suspended hand hovering between a caress and a blow—a state of perfect, paralyzing equipoise where every choice is a renunciation.
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.
noun
- The coexistence of opposing attitudes or feelings (such as love and hate) towards a person, object or idea.“"I dearly loved my master, son," she said.
"You should have hated him," I said.
"He gave me several sons," she said, "and because I loved my sons I learned to love their father though I hated him too."
"I too have become acquainted with ambivalence, I said.”
- A state of uncertainty or indecisiveness.