Word.ws English Dictionary

ambilevous

/ˌæmbɪˈliːvəs/

ambilevous adjective: having equally bad ability in both hands; clumsy; butterfingered.

Adjective

ambilevous (comparative more ambilevous, superlative most ambilevous)

  1. (rare) Having equally bad ability in both hands; clumsy; butterfingered.
    • Again, Some are Ἀμφαριστεροὶ as Galen hath expreſſed : that is, Ambilevous or left-handed on both ſides; ſuch as with agility and vigour have not the uſe of either : who are not gymnaſtically compoſed : nor actively uſe thoſe parts. Now in theſe there is no right hand : of this conſtitution are...1650, Thomas Browne, Pseudodoxia Epidemica: […], 2nd edition, London: […] A[braham] Miller, for Edw[ard] Dod and Nath[aniel] Ekins, […], →OCLC
    • Whereas the ambidextrous person is regarded as one who is capable of using both hands with equal dexterity, there are others, referred to as ambilevous, who use both hands equally awkwardly.1953, The Pediatric Clinics of North America, W.B. Saunders Co., page 607
    Synonyms:
    ambisinistrous

Synonyms of ambilevous

Antonyms

Forms of ambilevous

comparativemore ambilevous
superlativemost ambilevous
alternative formambilævous
alternative formambilaevous

Origin of ambilevous

First attested in English in 1646: from Latin ambilaevus (ambi- (“both”) + laevus (“left”)), a calque of Ancient Greek ἀμφαρίστερος (ampharísteros, “with two left hands, awkward, clumsy”) from ἀμφί (amphí, “on both sides”) + ἀριστερός (aristerós, “left”).

Questions about ambilevous

What does ambilevous mean?
Ambilevous means having equally bad ability in both hands; clumsy; butterfingered.
What part of speech is ambilevous?
Ambilevous is an adjective.
How do you pronounce ambilevous?
Ambilevous is pronounced /ˌæmbɪˈliːvəs/ (UK).

Words near ambilevous in the dictionary

  1. ambilaevous
  2. ambilanak
  3. ambilateral
  4. ambilaterality
  5. ambilaterally
  6. ambilevous
  7. ambilineal
  8. ambilineally
  9. ambilingual
  10. ambilingualism
  11. ambilinguals

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: ambilevous (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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