Fallacies of Ambiguity Vocabulary

using a word with multiple meanings to mislead

“A feather is light. Light is the opposite of dark. Therefore, a feather is the opposite of dark.”

grammatical ambiguity allowing multiple interpretations

“I saw the man with binoculars—was I using them, or was he?”

changing meaning through emphasis or punctuation

“We should not speak ILL of our friends—implying we should speak ill otherwise.”

assuming the whole has properties of its parts

“Each brick is light, so the building must be light—composition fallacy.”

assuming parts have properties of the whole

“The team is excellent, so each player must be excellent—division fallacy.”

dismissing counterexamples by redefining the category

“No true professional would do that—shifting the goalposts when proven wrong.”