A Contrastive Analysis of Synonymous Verbs "Defend," "Protect," "Shield," "Guard," "Safeguard” in English and Vietnamese Based on Argument Structure

The present study aims at investigating the subtle semantic differences between five English synonymous verbs, "defend," “protect”, "shield," "guard," and “safeguard,” and their Vietnamese equivalents by applying the theory of argument construction. This research demonstrates that separation of near-synonyms is not only due to the overlap of definitions but also the actant structures, circumstantial parameters, and pragmatic distributions. The analysis reveals how each verb activates specific conceptual frames and constructional patterns. This study is based on Tesnière’s valency theory and Bresnan’s argument structure as well as on frame semantics, construction grammar, prototype theory, and cognitive linguistics. For example, “defend” and “shield” tend to connote responses to specific threats, often requiring long-term or specific actions, while “protect” emphasizes precaution against possible dangers. To guard is to be vigilant. To safeguard is to be institutional. The Vietnamese words “b?o v?, gi? gìn, phòng th?, che ch?n, canh gác” are similar in meaning but are applied in culturally different ways. “Gi? gìn” relates to the preservation of culture or morality. The prototype is “b?o v?”. In theory, the study uses lexicographic definitions and corpus data from the COCA, BNC, and Vietnamese Corpora and analyzes frequency counts, collocational patterns, concordance lines, and semantic prosody. Recent studies show that core concepts are language-independent, and pragmatic extensions and argument structures are language-specific. This work is a systematic analysis of synonymy at the level of the syntax-semantics interface and makes a contribution to contrastive linguistics and applied pedagogy with recommendations for the teaching of the differentiation of synonyms and translation. This work highlights the importance of combining empirical corpus evidence with theoretical rigor in cross-linguistic studies of lexical semantics.