Clear vs. Unambiguous — What's the Difference?

Easy to perceive, understand, or interpret

Having or exhibiting no ambiguity or uncertainty; clear.

(of a substance) transparent; unclouded

, and having no uncertainty or ambiguity.

Free of any obstructions or unwanted objects

Having or exhibiting a single clearly defined meaning;

Not touching; away from

Admitting of no doubt or misunderstanding; having only one meaning or interpretation and leading to only one conclusion;

Complete; full

Denoting a palatalized form of the sound of the letter l (as in leaf in most accents of English).

So as to be out of the way of or away from

Completely

Remove an obstruction or unwanted item or items from

Remove (an obstruction or unwanted item) from somewhere

Get past or over (something) safely or without touching it

Officially show or declare (someone) to be innocent

Give official approval or authorization to

Earn or gain (an amount of money) as a net profit

Free from clouds, mist, or haze

Not obscured or darkened; bright

Easily seen through; transparent

Free from flaw, blemish, or impurity

Free from impediment, obstruction, or hindrance; open

Plain or evident to the mind; unmistakable

Easily perceptible to the eye or ear; distinct

Discerning or perceiving easily; keen

Free from doubt or confusion; certain

Free from qualification or limitation; absolute

Free from guilt; untroubled

Having been freed from contact, proximity, or connection

Free from charges or deductions; net

Containing nothing

Distinctly; clearly

Out of the way; completely away

(Informal) All the way; completely

To make light, clear, or bright

To rid of impurities, blemishes, muddiness, or foreign matter

To free from confusion, doubt, or ambiguity; make plain or intelligible

To rid of objects or obstructions

To make (a way or clearing) by removing obstructions

To remove (objects or obstructions)

To remove the occupants of

To remove (people)

To move or shoot (a ball or puck) away from the goal or out of the defensive zone.

To clear a ball or puck out of (the defensive zone), as in lacrosse or hockey.

To rid (a memory location or buffer, for example) of instructions or data.

To remove (instructions or data) from memory.

To free from a legal charge or imputation of guilt; acquit

To pass by, under, or over without contact

To settle (a debt).

To gain (a given amount) as net profit or earnings.

To pass (a bill of exchange, such as a check) through a clearing-house.

To secure the approval of

To authorize or approve

To free (a ship or cargo) from legal detention at a harbor by fulfilling customs and harbor requirements.

To give clearance or authorization to

To free (the throat) of phlegm by making a rasping sound.

To become clear

To go away; disappear

To exchange checks and bills or settle accounts through a clearing-house.

To pass through the banking system and be debited and credited to the relevant accounts

To comply with customs and harbor requirements in discharging a cargo or in leaving or entering a port.

A clear or open space.

Transparent in colour.

Bright; luminous; not dark or obscured.

Free of obstacles.

Without clouds.

(meteorology) Of the sky, such that less than one eighth of its area is obscured by clouds.

Free of ambiguity or doubt.

Distinct, sharp, well-marked.

(figuratively) Free of guilt, or suspicion.

(of a soup) Without a thickening ingredient.

Possessing little or no perceptible stimulus.

(Scientology) Free from the influence of engrams; see Clear (Scientology).

Able to perceive clearly; keen; acute; penetrating; discriminating.

Not clouded with passion; serene; cheerful.

Easily or distinctly heard; audible.

Unmixed; entirely pure.

Without defects or blemishes, such as freckles or knots.

Without diminution; in full; net.

Showing a green aspect, allowing a train to proceed past it.

All the way; entirely.

Not near something or touching it.

Free (or separate) from others.

In a clear manner; plainly.

(transitive) To remove obstructions, impediments or other unwanted items from.

(transitive) To remove (items or material) so as to leave something unobstructed or open.

(intransitive) To leave abruptly; to clear off or clear out.

(intransitive) To become free from obstruction or obscurement; to become transparent.

(transitive) To eliminate ambiguity or doubt from (a matter); to clarify or resolve; to clear up.

(transitive) To remove from suspicion, especially of having committed a crime.

(transitive) To pass without interference; to miss.

To exceed a stated mark.

To finish or complete (a stage, challenge, or game).

(intransitive) Of a check or financial transaction, to go through as payment; to be processed so that the money is transferred.

To earn a profit of; to net.

(transitive) To approve or authorise for a particular purpose or action; to give clearance to.

(transitive) To obtain approval or authorisation in respect of.

(intransitive) To obtain a clearance.

(transitive) To obtain permission to use (a sample of copyrighted audio) in another track.

To disengage oneself from incumbrances, distress, or entanglements; to become free.

To hit, kick, head, punch etc. (a ball, puck) away in order to defend one's goal.

To reset or unset; to return to an empty state or to zero.

To style (an element within a document) so that it is not permitted to float at a given position.

(carpentry) Full extent; distance between extreme limits; especially; the distance between the nearest surfaces of two bodies, or the space between walls.

(video games) The completion of a stage or challenge, or of the whole game.

(Scientology) A person who is free from the influence of engrams.

Free from opaqueness; transparent; bright; light; luminous; unclouded.

Free from ambiguity or indistinctness; lucid; perspicuous; plain; evident; manifest; indubitable.

Able to perceive clearly; keen; acute; penetrating; discriminating; as, a clear intellect; a clear head.

Not clouded with passion; serene; cheerful.

Easily or distinctly heard; audible; canorous.

Without mixture; entirely pure; as, clear sand.

Without defect or blemish, such as freckles or knots; as, a clear complexion; clear lumber.

Free from guilt or stain; unblemished.

Without diminution; in full; net; as, clear profit.

Free from impediment or obstruction; unobstructed; as, a clear view; to keep clear of debt.

Free from embarrassment; detention, etc.

Full extent; distance between extreme limits; especially; the distance between the nearest surfaces of two bodies, or the space between walls; as, a room ten feet square in the clear.

In a clear manner; plainly.

Without limitation; wholly; quite; entirely; as, to cut a piece clear off.

To render bright, transparent, or undimmed; to free from clouds.

To free from impurities; to clarify; to cleanse.

To free from obscurity or ambiguity; to relive of perplexity; to make perspicuous.

To render more quick or acute, as the understanding; to make perspicacious.

To free from impediment or incumbrance, from defilement, or from anything injurious, useless, or offensive; as, to clear land of trees or brushwood, or from stones; to clear the sight or the voice; to clear one's self from debt; - often used with of, off, away, or out.

To free from the imputation of guilt; to justify, vindicate, or acquit; - often used with from before the thing imputed.

To leap or pass by, or over, without touching or failure; as, to clear a hedge; to clear a reef.

To gain without deduction; to net.

To become free from clouds or fog; to become fair; - of the weather; - often followed by up, off, or away.

To become free from turbidity; - of solutions or suspensions of liquids; as, the salt has not completely dissolved until the suspension clears up; when refrigerated, the juice may become cloudy, but when warmed to room temperature, it clears up again.

To disengage one's self from incumbrances, distress, or entanglements; to become free.

To make exchanges of checks and bills, and settle balances, as is done in a clearing house.

To obtain a clearance; as, the steamer cleared for Liverpool to-day.

The state of being free of suspicion;

A clear or unobstructed space or expanse of land or water;

Rid of obstructions;

Make a way or path by removing objects;

Become clear;

Grant authorization or clearance for;

Remove;

Go unchallenged; be approved;

Be debited and credited to the proper bank accounts;

Go away or disappear;

Pass by, over, or under without making contact;

Make free from confusion or ambiguity; make clear;

Free from payment of customs duties, as of a shipment;

Clear from impurities, blemishes, pollution, etc.;

Yield as a net profit;

Make as a net profit;

Earn on some commercial or business transaction; earn as salary or wages;

Sell;

Pass an inspection or receive authorization;

Pronounce not guilty of criminal charges;

Settle, as of a debt;

Make clear, bright, light, or translucent;

Rid of instructions or data;

Remove (people) from a building;

Remove the occupants of;

Free (the throat) by making a rasping sound;

Clear to the mind;

Free from confusion or doubt;

Affording free passage or view;

Free from cloudiness; allowing light to pass through;

Free from contact or proximity or connection;

Characterized by freedom from troubling thoughts (especially guilt);

(of sound or color) free from anything that dulls or dims;

(especially of a title) free from any encumberance or limitation that presents a question of fact or law;

Clear and distinct to the senses; easily perceptible;

Accurately stated or described;

Free from clouds or mist or haze;

Free of restrictions or qualifications;

Free from flaw or blemish or impurity;

Clear of charges or deductions;

Easily deciphered

Freed from any question of guilt;

Characterized by ease and quickness in perceiving;

Of complexion; without such blemishes as e.g. acne;

Completely;

In an easily perceptible manner;