Right now we are somewhere between the first two scenarios -- and could remain ambiguously so for some time.

CNN: N. Korea endgame: 3 scenarios

Ever had a dispute with your life insurer over an ambiguously worded policy?

FORBES: Poorly Worded Life Insurance Policies Can Cost Survivors Big Bucks

Or, somewhat more ambiguously, if a threat to society is known to exist, but the "length of the fuse" remains uncertain?

NPR: The Torture Debate Is Not Yet Over

It said, ambiguously, that it would remain "in continuous session" to discuss how to safeguard "the aspirations of the great Egyptian people".

BBC: Egypt crisis: Premature celebrations on Mubarak speech

There was no doubt about the intended target of his comments, but they were phrased ambiguously enough to save Mr Thaksin's face.

ECONOMIST: Thais are impatient for change, but it will take time

Stocks stumble out of the gate on a surprise spike in initial jobless claims, but rebound from lows on ambiguously positive home-sales data.

FORBES

He falls into an intense admiration of the good-looking lead guitarist (Billy Crudup), who is ambiguously friendly, and receives gentle treatment from a trio of groupies, the Band-Aids (led by Kate Hudson).

NEWYORKER: Almost Famous

The presence of a clinic that offered abortions on the reservation might well have been challenged legally, without an outright ban: the Oglala Sioux tribal code says, rather ambiguously, that a child subsequently born is protected from conception onwards.

ECONOMIST: Abortion law in South Dakota