“Ambisinister” goes hand in hand, so to speak, with “ambidextrous.” The latter term translates literally to “both sides right-handed” (with “ambi” coming from the Latin prefix meaning “both,” and “dexter” in Latin meaning “right-handed”), but it’s used to mean that someone is equally skilled with either their right or left hand. “Ambisinister,” meanwhile, translates to “both sides left-handed.” “Sinestra” in Latin means “left hand” but as the word moved into Old French and Middle English, it came to mean “unlucky.” There was a long-held superstition that things coming from the left direction and things situated on the left side were with bad things, and that’s where “sinister” gets its evil connotation. But going back to hands, to be ambisinister means to be equally clumsy with both hands.