Trang 1 HUNG YEN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY AND EDUCATION FACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES --- GRADUATION PAPER FIELD: ENGLISH LINGUISTICS A CONTRASTIVE ANALYSIS BETWEEN THE VERB "EAT" IN ENGL
HUNG YEN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY AND EDUCATION FACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES - GRADUATION PAPER FIELD: ENGLISH LINGUISTICS A CONTRASTIVE ANALYSIS BETWEEN THE VERB "EAT" IN ENGLISH AND THE VERB "ĂN" IN VIETNAMESE (PHÂN TÍCH ĐỐI CHIẾU ĐỘNG TỪ "EAT" TRONG TIẾNG ANH VÀ ĐỘNG TỪ "ĂN" TRONG TIẾNG VIỆT) Supervisor: Le Thi Thanh Nga, MA Student: Nguyen Thu Ha Student number: 11317088 Hung Yen – 2021 HUNG YEN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY AND EDUCATION FACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES - GRADUATION PAPER FIELD: ENGLISH LINGUISTICS A CONTRASTIVE ANALYSIS BETWEEN THE VERB "EAT" IN ENGLISH AND THE VERB "ĂN" IN VIETNAMESE (PHÂN TÍCH ĐỐI CHIẾU ĐỘNG TỪ "EAT" TRONG TIẾNG ANH VÀ ĐỘNG TỪ "ĂN" TRONG TIẾNG VIỆT) Student: Nguyen Thu Ha Student number: 11317088 Supervisor: Le Thi Thanh Nga, MA Hung Yen – 2021 i DECLARATION I certify that the study entitled "A contrastive analysis between the verb "eat" in English and the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese" is the result of my research and has not been submitted to any other universities or institutions Signature Nguyen Thu Ha ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT In the process of implementing my graduation paper, I have received lots often encouragements, precious ideas, and experiences from my teachers, family, and friends First of all, I would like to express my profound gratitude to my supervisor Mrs Le Thi Thanh Nga who gives me a lot of supports and guidance Without her help, my paper would have never been completed Besides, my sincere thanks are also extended to all the teachers in the faculty of foreign languages at Hung Yen University of Technology and Education for their lectures and whole-hearted advice to help me complete this study Last but not least, I would like to thank my family and friends who have encouraged and supported me a lot iii ABSTRACT This study aimed at exploring the syntactic and semantic features of the verb "eat" in English and the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese Specifically, the study will find out several similarities and differences of syntactic and semantic features between the verb "eat" in English and the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese To achieve the aims of the study, the author combined both qualitative and quantitative methods through was taken to collect and analyze data Writers refer to data taken from various sources such as linguists, books, newspapers, magazines, literary works, websites, and the Internet The results provide some support for learners to have a good understanding of learning and translating English verbs TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ii ABSTRACT iii CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale 1.2 Aims of the study 1.4 Scope of the study 1.5 Methods of the study 1.6 Design of the study CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 An overview of contrastive analysis 2.1.1 Definitions 2.1.2 Kinds of contrastive analysis 2.1.2.1 Contrastive analysis as Interlanguage study 2.1.2.2 Contrastive analysis as “Pure" or "Applied" Linguistics 2.1.2.3 Contrastive analysis and Bilingualism 2.1.3 Principles in contrastive analysis 2.2 An overview of verbs 2.2.1 Verbs in English 2.2.1.1 Definitions 2.2.1.2 Classifications 2.2.1.3 Characteristics of verbs in English 10 2.2.2 Verbs in Vietnamese 11 2.2.2.1 Definitions 11 2.2.2.2 Classifications 12 2.2.2.3 Characteristics of verbs in Vietnamese 13 2.3 Definition of syntax 13 2.4 Semantic 14 2.4.1 Definitions 14 2.4.2 Classifications 15 2.5 Summary 15 CHAPTER III: THE STUDY 17 3.1 Methodology and data 17 3.1.1 Methodology 17 3.1.2 Data 17 3.2 Analysis 17 3.2.1 An investigation into the verb "eat" in English 17 3.2.1.1 Syntactic features 17 3.2.1.2 Semantic features 19 3.2.1.3 Synonyms of the verb "eat" 21 3.2.2 An investigation into the verb “ăn" in Vietnamese 22 3.2.2.1 Syntactic features 22 3.2.2.2 Semantic features 22 3.2.2.3 Synonyms of the verb "ăn" 25 3.3 Findings 26 3.3.1 Similarities and differences in syntactic and semantic features of the verb "eat" in English and the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese 26 3.3.2 Suggestions for teachers and students in teaching and learning the verb "eat" in English and the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese 31 CHAPTER IV: CONCLUSION 33 4.1 Summary of the study 33 4.2 Limitations of the study 34 4.3 Suggestions for a further study 34 REFERENCES 35 CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale English is widely used and has been especially important in the world In Vietnam, it is not an exception and has become a compulsory subject in schools, colleges, and universities However, learning English is a big problem for learners because they are affected by their mother tongue during the process of studying grammar, vocabulary, spelling, pronunciation, etc On the part of grammar, verbs are the most common word type of the Vietnamese word system as well as in English Along with the subject, verbs are a must in the sentence At the same time, this is a very important word in sentences and sentences of both English and Vietnamese because it helps us identify the main content of the sentence In the vocabulary system of Vietnamese and English, verbs that account for a large number are used with the high frequency of daily life because they are associated with human activities, states, emotions In particular, the verb "eat" is considered such a typical verb, because it is classified in the group of verbs indicating human activity This is considered the main human activity, having important meaning and determining human existence This is the reason why the researcher chooses "A contrastive analysis between the verb "eat" in English and the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese" as the topic for the minor thesis The comparison of the verbs "eat" in English and the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese firstly to better understand the syntactic and semantic features of two verbs in each language, thereby drawing some remarks on the similarities and differences of the syntactic and semantic features between the two languages 1.2 Aims of the study Some main purposes of the study are summarized as follows: - To investigate the similarities and differences in syntactic and semantic features of the verb "eat" in English and Vietnamese - To give recommendations for teachers and students in teaching and learning the verb "eat" 1.3 Research questions The study is an attempt to analyze the verb "eat" between English and Vietnamese, then make a comparison between them Thus, it seeks answers to the following questions: What are the similarities and differences in the syntactic and semantic features of the verb "eat" in English and the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese? What are suggestions for teachers and students in teaching and learning the verb "eat"? 1.4 Scope of the study This is a minor thesis Consequently, within the framework of the thesis and with the limitation of the time and length, the study only focuses on analyzing the verb "eat" on the characteristics of syntactic and semantic in English and Vietnamese Afterward, the researcher will show the similarities and differences between the two verbs in English and Vietnamese 1.5 Methods of the study To carry out the study, qualitative and quantitative methods tools are used The quantitative method is used to analyze the numbers and proportions of verbs in both English and Vietnamese After getting the result, the qualitative method is used to generalize the characteristics, property, and similarities and differences of the verb "eat" in English and the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese In particular, the data were collected from various sources such as Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary, Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary, Vietnamese Dictionary, etc 1.6 Design of the study The study consists of four chapters: Chapter I: Introduction: shows the rationale, aims, research questions, scope, method, and design of the study 22 For example, He was chewing on a piece of celery (macmillandictionary.com) - To eat something noisily and enthusiastically: munch or munch at For example, The kids were munching crisps in front of the TV (macmillandictionary.com) - To eat so much that you feel ill or uncomfortable: stuff yourself (informal) For example, I‟m not surprised you feel sick, the way you stuffed yourself last night (macmillandictionary.com) 3.2.2 An investigation into the verb “ăn" in Vietnamese 3.2.2.1 Syntactic features a) Like other verbs in English, the verb "ăn" can take on the predicative function of the sentence For example, Tôi ăn cơm (khotrithucso.com) b) The verb "ăn" in Vietnamese can function as a subject For example, Ăn chín tốt cho sức khỏe (khotrithucso.com) c) In addition, the verb "ăn" also acts as the complement in the sentence to complete the meaning of the sentence For example, mời ăn, xin ăn, nấu ăn (khotrithucso.com) d) The verb "ăn" in Vietnamese can function as a predicate For example, nhà ăn, bếp ăn, phòng ăn (khotrithucso.com) 3.2.2.2 Semantic features According to the Vietnamese Dictionary, the study on metaphoric meanings of food in English and Vietnamese, the verb "eat" has many meanings The researcher will analyze each meaning related to the verb "eat" with the specific example below: 23 (1) To put food into the mouth, chew it, and swallow it For example, Họ ăn cơm (khotrithucso.com) (2) To attend a party on a particular occasion For example, Ngày mai em quê ăn cưới (khotrithucso.com) (3) To consume (goods, fuel, time, money) For example, Năm xe cút kít đến ăn hàng chiến sĩ khéo léo điều khiển chạy băng băng ván gác đầu lên nhau, vừa đủ cho người (Báo Văn nghệ) (4) To receive or to suffer For example, Họ làm công ăn lương (khotrithucso.com) (5) To win more For example, Anh ăn giải lớn (khotrithucso.com) (6) To absorb, stick together For example, Gạch ăn vữa (khotrithucso.com) (7) To create harmony For example, Cái vòng huyền ăn với màu da trắng hình búp măng năm ngón tay mũm mĩm (Khái Hưng) (8) To damage or destroy something For example, Anh sợ bị nước ăn chân (khotrithucso.com) (9) To expand For example, Ý tưởng ngày ăn sâu vào tâm hồn nàng trở nên ý định ngày đêm ám ảnh nàng (Khái Hưng) 24 (10) To belong For example, Khu đất ăn vào nhà hàng xóm (khotrithucso.com) (11) To calculate For example, Tỉ lệ mà William Hill đưa với Platini đặt ăn (Báo Thể thao ngày nay) (12) To beneficiaries For example, Dù ăn lương đại tá quân đội bảo hiểm chi trả phần khó khăn kinh tế mà Quốc Trị gặp phải điều khó tránh khỏi (Báo Văn nghệ) (13) To something in the short term, pragmatic For example, Tình trạng ăn xổi tham lam lợi trước mắt làm tử di sản (Báo Văn nghệ) (14) To a living For example, Nếu khách hàng làm ăn đương nhiên ngân hàng tự hạ lãi suất cho vay kêu gọi hạ lãi suất (Báo Văn nghệ) (15) To benefit from other objects For example, Mình nghĩ ngồi hai mươi tuổi ăn bám bố mẹ, Vui thấy khổ tâm xấu hổ (Báo Văn nghệ) (16) To perform operations For example, Qua cách nói chuyện em thấy người khéo ăn nói, dễ lấy thiện cảm người khác (Báo Văn nghệ) (17) To chewing betel, smoking For example, Gặp ăn miếng trầu Gọi nghĩa cũ sau mà chào (Ca dao) 25 Ngọn đèn dùng để châm đóm ăn thuốc lào chiếu ánh sáng vào mặt quan (Vũ Trọng Phụng) 3.2.2.3 Synonyms of the verb "ăn" As the researcher mentioned the meanings related to the verb "eat" above, we can see that the verb "eat" in Vietnamese has many rich implications Besides the verb "eat" there are also many synonyms related to the group of meanings that the researcher has listed Here the researcher will give some typical synonyms related to the verb "eat" with the most specific examples - There is a very ancient word, relating to eating: ngự thiện For example, Chiều hôm ấy, Chúa, Tuyên phi Thế tử ngự thiện lầu (Nguyễn Huy Tưởng) - The word used not seldom talked dining: chén For example, Món khoai tây hầm ngon quá, hội chén mạch hết bay nồi (thethaovanhoa.vn) - Adults often use this word with children: măm măm For example, Con ngoan, mẹ cho măm măm nào! (thethaovanhoa.vn) - In addition to the words: xơi, đớp, hốc, tọng For example, Chỉ năm mà xơi tái mẫu ruộng dân Cá đớp mồi Cứ hốc cho vào chết miếng ăn Hắn vục mặt xuống, tọng cho đầy dày (thethaovanhoa.vn) 26 3.3 Findings 3.3.1 Similarities and differences in syntactic and semantic features of the verb "eat" in English and the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese a Similarities in syntactic of the verb “eat” in English and the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese There are some similarities in syntax characteristics between the verb "eat" in English and the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese as follows: First, both verbs primarily act as the predicate of the sentence For example, They / eat rice (khotrithucso.com) S V Họ / ăn cơm (khotrithucso.com) S V Second, in both languages, the verbs "eat" and "ăn" are intransitive and transitive verbs For example, I eat an apple (jes.edu.vn) Children eat in the park (jes.edu.vn) Tôi ăn (khotrithucso.com) Nồi canh ăn mặn ăn (khotrithucso.com) Third, both verbs have great synergies They can be combined with modal words, nouns, verbs, adjectives to express the meaningful content of the sentences For example, eat rice, eat break, to eat standing up, to eat more, etc (khotrithucso.com) ăn sáng, ăn mặn, ăn xin, ăn bám (khotrithucso.com) Moreover, both verbs can be the subject, object, and complement of the sentence 27 For example, Eat your dinner (subject) (jes.edu.vn) He eats food (object) (jes.edu.vn) John likes eating quickly (complement) (jes.edu.vn) Ăn rào (subject) (khotrithucso.com) Tôi không thích ăn lúc (object) (khotrithucso.com) Họ nấu ăn (complement) (khotrithucso.com) b Differences in syntactic of the verb “eat” in English and the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese There are also obvious differences in the syntax characteristics between the two verbs below: First, the verb "eat" makes grammatical categories such as tense, aspect, person but the verb "ăn" does not For example, He eats an apple (english-for-students.com) He ate an apple (english-for-students.com) He was eating an apple (english-for-students.com) Besides, the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese is not affected by number, person, mood, voice, and tense, while "eat" has to change by different tenses, aspects, numbers, person To indicate tenses in Vietnamese, people use such particles as 'đã,' 'đang,' 'sẽ, 'mới,' 'sắp sửa,' 'rồi,' etc and auxiliaries like 'bị,' 'được' to indicate aspects For example, Mẹ ăn cơm bố (khotrithucso.com) c Similarities in semantic of the verb “eat” in English and the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese As the researcher mentioned all the meanings related to the verb "eat" in English and the verb "eat" in Vietnamese, the researcher finds that both verbs have some similarities in semantic characteristics as follows: 28 First, both verbs are one of the typical verbs that to put food into the mouth, chew it, and swallow it For example, People living in South Asia eat a lot of rice for health reasons (elearning.edu) (Người dân sống vùng Nam Á ăn nhiều cơm lí sức khỏe.) Second, both verbs have some meanings equivalently as follows: (1) To attend a party on a particular occasion For example, They ate a happy birthday (elearning.edu) (Họ ăn bữa sinh nhật vui vẻ.) (2) To consume (goods, fuel, time, money) For example, Online research and phone calls can easily eat up a couple of hours of my hours (elearning.edu) (Việc tìm kiếm trực tuyến điện thoại dễ dàng tiêu phí (ăn mất) bạn thời gian làm việc.) (3) To absorb, stick together For example, My car has recently started to eat tires (elearning.edu) (Chiếc xe gần bắt đầu bị ăn mòn lốp.) d Differences in semantic of the verb “eat” in English and the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese After learning about the meaning of the verb "eat" in English and the verb "eat" in Vietnamese, we can see that the verb "eat" in Vietnamese has richer meanings than the verb "eat" in English In English, the verb "eat" has some meanings, but the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese does not have those meanings as follows: (1) To psychologically active 29 For example, Giant failures could eat at the soul for thousands of years (elearning.edu) (2) To welcome, praise, love For example, Students attentively eat up every word of the teacher (elearning.edu) (3) To occupy / occupied space / capacity For example, For hours they sat in silence, letting the clatter of the wheels eat up their words (elearning.edu) (4) To absorb knowledge For example, I'd rather not eat "processed emotions".(elearning.edu) (5) To take back words For example, Nick told everyone that he'd be picked up for the team but when he wasn't chosen he had to eat his words (Dictionary of American idioms) (6) To admit mistakes, to endure For example, John, stand up for your right! You don't have to eat a humble pie all the time (Dictionary of American idioms) In Vietnamese, the verb "ăn" has some meanings, but the verb "eat" in English does not have those meanings as follows: (1) To create harmony For example, Sự ăn ý cảm xúc nghệ thuật đạo diễn quay phim thành phần nghệ thuật khác tạo cảm giác đe dọa (Báo văn nghệ) (2) To expand For example, Nước mặn ăn vào ruộng (elearning.edu) (3) To belong For example, Khoản ăn vào ngân sách nhà nước (elearning.edu) 30 (4) To calculate For example, Hôm đô la ăn 20000 đồng Việt Nam (elearning.edu) (5) To beneficiaries For example: Chủ cửa hàng mực từ chối lại tư vấn cho cách khác để ăn chênh lệch giá tăng "dem" (Báo văn nghệ) (6) To something in the short term, pragmatic For example, Ăn xổi (Thành ngữ) (7) To a living For example, Độ làm ăn khó (vtudien.com) (8) To benefit from other objects For example, Hiện tượng ăn xin, chèo kéo khách viết sớ, khấn thuê, xem tướng diễn Chùa Keo, Phủ Giày (Báo văn nghệ) (9) to perform operations For example, Mấy ngày nay, đành phải đồng mua lại dưa hộ khác mang chợ xã bán lại để kiếm tiền cho ăn học (Báo Văn nghệ công an) (10) To chewing betel, smoking For example, - Tiện ăn miếng trầu Hỏi quê quán đâu là? Xưa Chỉ điếu thuốc, miếng trầu nên quen (Ca dao) 31 3.3.2 Suggestions for teachers and students in teaching and learning the verb "eat" in English and the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese a Suggestions for teachers - The final aim of language teaching is to develop learner‟s communicative competence and linguistic competence The teacher should provide learners with an increasing number of words and their equivalents in the target language, which helps them choose what to use quickly and interpret accurately in different contexts To provide grammatical meaning and lexical meaning of the verb "eat", provide their sense relations such as synonyms or antonyms, etc Being aware of its importance, we have endeavored to provide a contrastive analysis between the verb "eat" in English and the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese - The form to organize teaching is a crucial issue contributing to the lesson's success, so it is advisable to apply records such as individuals, groups, games, etc, to keep students interested in learning - To avoid monotonous traditional ways, teachers can use games with synonyms However, there are very few absolute synonyms Thus, the teaching "eat" with them should not be isolated from their contexts - During the teaching process, teachers should beware of the similarities and differences, particularly the differences between them which will restrict the mother tongue interference at the maximum This helps to avoid culture shocks or “stupid” mistakes in communication That is what a contrastive analysis aims at - Give lots of exercises for students to practice and memorize b Suggestions for students - Learning grammar is an essential issue in learning a new language Know grammar is grasping the rules of a language Therefore, the analysis of the syntactic characteristics of the verb “run” in English and the verb “chạy” in Vietnamese helps learners know the main role of the verb “run” in the sentence 32 - Learning new words is also important in language By analyzing the meanings of the verb "eat" in both languages, the researcher gave many purposes equivalent to the verb "eat" in both languages Thereby helping English learners can learn some new words as well as improve their vocabulary - Learners should beware of the similarities and differences during the learning, particularly the mother differences between them, restricting the interference tongue to the maximum The study on the synonyms of the verbs "eat" and "ăn" may help translators decide the best word choice when working with those two verbs - When translating, translators should be clear about the context, grammar rules of the two languages, their writing conventions, and their idioms Thus, to find the best equivalents for "eat" or "ăn," translators should master all semantic features of all lexical items, based on the context as well as other macro-linguistic factors - Practice more by doing exercises related to the verb eat 33 CHAPTER IV: CONCLUSION 4.1 Summary of the study In short, there are three main chapters in the study The first chapter with six sections is the rationale, aims, research questions, scope, methods, and study design The second chapter is a literature review The third chapter is the study The chapter last is the conclusion The verbs "eat" in English and "ăn" in Vietnamese have been studied carefully Similarities and differences between them have been found, basing on theoretical background These two verbs were analyzed and contrasted in respect of grammatical features, semantic features, their synonyms which were the focus of the study Some findings were drawn out as follows: - "Eat" and "ăn" share quite a lot of similar syntactic features such as they have different functions in a sentence such as a predicate, subject, complement, or object - They also share some similar morphological features - "Eat" carries markers of grammatical categories such as tense, aspect, person, number, and mood while "ăn" does not - In terms of semantic features, basing on the results of studying the two verbs separately, we found the following: + "Eat" and "ăn" share at four similar general meanings + "Eat" has at least six items of meanings different from "ăn" +"Ăn" is found at least ten items of meanings differing from "eat" The purpose of this study will be to find the similarities and differences in syntactic and semantic features of the verb "eat" in English and Vietnamese; help teachers, as well as learners of English, acquire a comprehensive understanding of the verb "eat" in English and Vietnamese Besides, give recommendations for teachers and students in teaching and learning the verb "eat" in English and Vietnamese 34 4.2 Limitations of the study The study has achieved the set objectives, but there are still some unavoidable limitations due to the limited time and knowledge of the researcher Firstly, the research only focuses on the verb "eat" in English and the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese Secondly, due to the limitation of time and tools, the study only investigates the syntactic and semantic features of two verbs Finally, despite the mentioned limitations, the study notifying the main similarities and differences between the verb "eat" in English and the verb "ăn" in Vietnamese 4.3 Suggestions for a further study On the basics of the findings and limitations of the study, the researcher would like to propose some suggestions which are probably helpful for further studies Further studies would be of interest to focus on analyzing more aspects of other verbs in English and Vietnamese to find out more similarities and differences between the verbs of the two languages Therefore, have recommendations for further research which are surely promising, interesting, and welcome: - An investigation into "eat" and its synonyms and antonyms - A study on the forms and meanings of the lexical verb "eat" and Vietnamese equivalents - A study on the forms and meanings of the verb "ăn" and its English equivalents 35 REFERENCES Vietnamese Diệp Quang Ban (2013), Ngữ pháp tiếng Việt, Nxb Giáo Dục Việt Nam Đinh Văn Đức (2010), Ngữ pháp tiếng Việt (Từ loại), Nxb Đại học Quốc Gia, Hà Nội Cao Xuân Hạo (1991), Tiếng Việt – Sơ Thảo Ngữ Pháp Chức Năng, Nhà Xuất Bản Khoa Học Xã Hội Nguyễn Lân (1956), Ngữ pháp lớp 7, Bộ giáo dục sản xuất Hoàng Phê (1994), Từ điển tiếng Việt, Nxb Khoa học Xã hội Đái Xuân Ninh (1978), Hoạt động từ tiếng Việt, Nxb Khoa học Xã hội English Carl James (1980), Contrastive analysis, p.5 Chaturvedi (1973), principles for contrastive Corder (1973), An introduction to applied linguistic, p.10 Fisiak (1981), Contrastive analysias, p.1 Geoffrey Leech (1974), „Semantics- A Study of meaning’ Gerald P Delahunty, James J Garvey (1994), Language, Grammar, and communication: A course for teachers of English, New York Jirka Hana (2011), Linguistics, Syntax Johnson (1999), Contrastive analysis, retrieved from (https://www.studymode.com/course-notes/Contrastive-Analysis-49036395.html) Lado, Rober (1957) Linguistics across Cultures, University of Michigan Pres, Amm Arbor 10 M.Gass & Selinker (2008), Contrastive analysis, retrieved from (https://www.studymode.com/course-notes/Contrastive-Analysis-49036395.html) 11 Michel Jules Alfred Bréal, French philologist (1832-1915), semantic 12 Nguyễn Thị Kim Hoàng, The study on metaphoric meanings of food in English and Vietnamese, MA thesis, University of Da Nang 2011 36 13 O‟Connor D J (1973), Phonetics, penguin, p.10 14 Richards, J.C et al (1992), Dictionary of Language Teaching and Applied Linguistics, Longman Press, Malaysia 15 Yule, George (2006), The Study of Language, Cambridge University Press Online dictionaries Macmillan Dictionary [online] Available at: (https://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/british/eat) The Cambridge Dictionary Online [online] Available at: (https://dictionary.cambridge.org/) The Oxford Dictionary Online [online] Available at: (https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/)