Epäyksiselitteinen

Epäyksiselitteinen is the Finnish adjective describing something that is not unequivocal; it lacks a single, clearly defined interpretation and is therefore ambiguous or unclear. The word is formed from the prefix epä-, meaning not, and yksiselitteinen, which literally means unambiguous or with a single meaning (yksi = one, selittää/selitteinen = explainable). In linguistic, philosophical, legal, and academic contexts, epäyksiselitteinen is used to characterize statements, definitions, terms, or rules that can be interpreted in several ways rather than yielding one authoritative reading. The term highlights the absence of a definitive interpretation and often signals a need for clarification, more precise wording, or an operational definition to avoid disputes.

Distinctions: Epäyksiselitteinen differs from epäselvä, which more generally means unclear or hard to understand, and from moniselitteinen, which refers to something with multiple specific meanings. In practice, an epäyksiselitteinen formulation may be ambiguous due to lack of a single explanation rather than explicit multiple meanings. The term is common in analytical writing, contract drafting, and policy analysis, where precision is important. Examples include epäyksiselitteinen määritelmä (ambiguous definition) or epäyksiselitteinen sopimus (ambiguous contract).