ALT CROSSING RESTRICTION GIVEN RESULTING IN MISINTERPRETING MAINTAIN ALT; CROSS 11 DME NE AT 10000.

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WERE GIVEN A CLRNC TO CROSS 11 MI NE OF PVD VOR AT 10000' MSL. I DID NOT UNDERSTAND THE CLRNC AND ASKED THE COPLT TO CONFIRM WITH THE CENTER; WHICH HE DID. I DIALED IN 10000' ON THE ALT REMINDER. EITHER JUST BEFORE OR JUST AFTER WE SWITCHED TO APCH CTL; I HEARD SOME OTHER FLT RECEIVE A CLRNC TO; 'CROSS 10 MI NE OF PVD AT 11000'.' I ASKED THE COPLT TO AGAIN CONFIRM OUR CLRNC TO 10000'. HE DID AND THE CTLR THEN STATED THAT OUR ALT WAS 11000'. AT THIS TIME I WAS DSNDING THROUGH 10500'. DES WAS STOPPED AT APPROX 10300' AND CLB WAS MADE BACK TO 11000' MSL. NO OTHER TFC WAS OBSERVED AND NO FURTHER COMMENT WAS MADE BY OR TO ATC. AFTER THOROUGHLY DISCUSSING THE INCIDENT WITHIN THE COCKPIT; I AM NOT CERTAIN WHETHER THE MISTAKE WAS MADE BY US OR BY THE ISSUING CTLR; OR IF A MISTAKE WAS MADE AT ALL. COMMENTARY: I HAVE ON PREVIOUS FLTS THROUGH THIS AREA HAD ATC ASSIGN MY FLT; '10 NE OF PVD AT 11000;' AND A FEW SECS LATER GIVE ANOTHER FLT; '11 NE OF PVD AT 10000;' WITH THE SAME RESULTS. MY COMMENT TO THE CTLR AT THAT TIME; THAT HIS PHRASEOLOGY WAS VERY CONFUSING AND EASY TO MISUNDERSTAND; WAS MET WITH SARCASM. I STRONGLY URGE THE FOLLOWING PHRASEOLOGY: 1) '11 NE OF PVD AT 11000' OR '10 NE OF PVD AT 10000' AND NEVER; NEVER; NEVER MIX THE 2 TOGETHER. THERE ARE MORE THAN ONE OF THESE SETUPS IN THE NE AND ARE JUST WAITING FOR THE RIGHT SET OF CIRCUMSTANCES TO OCCUR AND THIS INCIDENT WILL BECOME AN ACCIDENT IF THEY ARE NOT CORRECTED.