How tolerant are Greek EFL learners of foreign language ambiguities?

This study is part of a larger research project that was conducted at the National Center of Public Administration of Greece. The aim of this paper is to identify and assess the degree of tolerance of ambiguity Greek civil servants demonstrate when learning English as a foreign language. The concept of tolerance of ambiguity is introduced and its relevance to language learning is discussed.

Qualitative analysis of research data indicates that Greek adult learners do not show the same tolerance in all skills, and are particularly intolerant of ambiguities stemming from communicating their ideas in English.