Linguistic Ambiguity Versus Vagueness in British Proverbs

Abstract

Introductory remarksBoth linguistic ambiguity and vagueness are related to indeterminacy in language or interpretive uncertainty. A considerable amount of literature has been published on these phenomena (Tanaka 1994, Varzi 2001, Pedersen 2002, Keefe 2003, Kennedy 2011, however, it remains unclear how they operate in the case of specific linguistic items such as proverbs.The present study focuses on the use of linguistic ambiguity (an ability of a language unit and context to convey multiple linguistic messages) and vagueness (as a feature of a word or phrase that conveys indeterminate meaning) in one hundred British proverbs. It aims to analyse which linguistic device is more prevalent, whether the two devices can be used together in the same proverb, and determine the reasons for the use of ambiguity and vagueness in British proverbs.