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Single Idea 23629

[filed under theme 19. Language / A. Nature of Meaning / 9. Ambiguity ]

Full Idea

There is no greater impediment to the advancement of knowledge than the ambiguity of words.

Gist of Idea

The ambiguity of words impedes the advancement of knowledge

Source

Thomas Reid (Essays on Intellectual Powers 1: Preliminary [1785], 1)

Book Ref

Reid,Thomas: 'Inquiry and Essays', ed/tr. Beanblossom /K.Lehrer [Hackett 1983], p.129

A Reaction

He means that ambiguity leads to long pointless disagreements.

The 4 ideas with the same theme [what double meanings show about language]:

23629 The ambiguity of words impedes the advancement of knowledge [Reid]
21929 Derrida focuses on ambiguity, but talks of 'dissemination', not traditional multiple meanings [Derrida]
21931 'Dissemination' is opposed to polysemia, since that is irreducible, because of multiple understandings [Derrida, by Glendinning]
3082 Ambiguity is when different underlying truth-conditional structures have the same surface form [Harman]