B777 TAXIES BEYOND HOLD SHORT POINT DUE TO CONFUSING PHRASEOLOGY AND FREQ CONGESTION.

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LANDED ON RWY 04R; CLRED AT TXWY 'L.' CLRED ACROSS RWY 04L; ON TXWYS 'M' TO 'R;' S ON 'R' TO HOLD SHORT OF TXWY 'RF.' EWR GND ADVISED THAT ACR MIGHT BE IN THE WAY AND THAT WE SHOULD CALL 'PORT AUTH' TO SEE IF WE HAD CLRNC TO ENTER. OUR CHARTS SHOW NO FREQ FOR 'PORT AUTH' BUT LIST RAMP AS CTLING AGENCY. RAMP CLRED US TO THE GATE. ACR WAS FAR OUT OF OUR WAY AND WAS OBVIOUSLY NO FACTOR. THERE WAS NO INDICATION ON OUR CHARTS OF WHERE GND CTL STOPPED AND RAMP BEGAN. AS WE APCHED TXWY 'RF;' MY INTENTION WAS TO DOUBLE CHK WITH GND CTL; EVEN THOUGH I WAS CERTAIN HIS REQUEST TO CHK WITH RAMP TO SEE IF WE HAD CLRNC TO ENTER INDICATED THAT IT WAS OK WITH HIM IF IT WAS OK WITH RAMP. AT THIS POINT THE FREQ WAS BLOCKED FOR SOME TIME AS THE GND CTLR READ AN ATC CLRNC TO A LIGHT PLANE AND RECEIVED A READBACK (EWR HAS A DEDICATED CLRNC DELIVERY FREQ). SINCE I WAS SO SURE GND WANTED ME TO CONTINUE TO THE GATE; I TURNED R ONTO TXWY 'RF' TO CLR 'R;' ONE OF THE MAIN N/S TXWYS. GND CTL BECAME QUITE UPSET AT US FOR TAXIING PAST THE TXWY 'RF' HOLD POINT WITHOUT CLRNC. A SMALL TWIN JET (I THINK A CANADAIR) TAXIED PAST ON THE INNER N TO S. GND HAD INTENDED TO TURN HIM ON TXWY 'RF;' WHICH WE HAD BLOCKED. AFTER ACFT CLRED; WE WERE ALLOWED TO TAXI TO THE RAMP TO PARK AT GATE. THERE WAS EXCELLENT VISIBILITY. AT NO TIME WERE WE IN CLOSE PROX TO ACFT. IF THE VISIBILITY HAD BEEN REDUCED IT MIGHT HAVE BEEN ANOTHER MATTER. I THINK THIS INCIDENT WAS CAUSED BY: COMS BTWN MY CREW AND GND CTL. IN RETROSPECT; I THINK HE WANTED US TO ASK RAMP IF WE HAD PHYSICAL; IE; WINGTIP; CLRNC TO GET IN. WE INTERPRETED THIS AS ASKING FOR LEGAL CLRNC TO ENTER. RAMP; IN FACT; 'CLRED' US TO TAXI TO THE GATE. I HEARD; AS HAS HAPPENED SO MANY TIMES; WHAT I EXPECTED LOGICALLY TO HEAR; WHEN THAT WASN'T WHAT THE CTLR WANTED US TO UNDERSTAND. USE OF GND CTL FOR CLRNC DELIVERY AND; IN EFFECT; SHUTTING DOWN GND COM WHILE THIS WAS GOING ON AS WELL AS DIVERTING CTLR'S ATTN. THIS TYPE OF THING CAN BE PREVENTED BY; CREWS BECOMING MORE CRITICAL LISTENERS; QUESTION IF NOT ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN EVEN IF ONE SOUNDS DOWNRIGHT STUPID. IF NOT SURE; STOP. WATCH USE OF TERMINOLOGY FOR ONE THING THAT IS OFTEN USED TO MEAN ANOTHER; AS IN 'CLRNC' FOR PHYSICAL CLRNC WHEN WE ARE SO USED TO HEARING THE TERM CONNECTED WITH LEGAL CLRNC. SUPPLEMENTAL INFO FROM ACN 316085: WE WERE NOT ABLE TO ESTABLISH CONTACT TO GND CTL AND INNER WAS CLOSED BTWN TWR AND TXWY RF. WE VERY SLOWLY CONTINUED TO TAXI WHEN GND CTL COMMANDED US TO STOP TILL HE ADVISED US TO CONTINUE! AREAS OF CONFUSION DID EXIST. CONTACT 'PORT AUTH' WE HAD NEVER BEEN GIVEN THAT REQUEST BEFORE. INNER CLOSED AND WE WERE HOLDING UP THE ONLY APPARENT TXWY OFF THE ACTIVE LNDG RWY. GA ACFT PICKING UP CLRNC ON VERY BUSY GND CTL FREQ AT A HIGH DENSITY NY ARPT.