terminology - Is there a name for a pair of words or phrase that can have a double meaning?



Is there a name for a pair of words or phrase that can have a double meaning? I was thinking homophones, but I thought that homophones are only applied to single words (ie their, there, and they're).


The example:




  • The term "werewolf hunter" can have two meanings



    • A hunter who is also a Werewolf

    • A hunter who hunts werewolves




  • The term "English teacher" can have two meanings



    • A teacher who is English in race

    • A teacher who teaches English




Is there a specific term for this kind of phrase?



Answer



A word or phrase that has more than one related meaning or sense is a polyseme. You can read a fairly good overview of polysemy here.


However, your examples are somewhat different from those on the link I've provided. Your examples are, more specifically, about the potential confusion caused when we assemble two or more nouns into phrases. The relationship between those nouns can become unclear, though context usually works it out.


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