MOTION VERBS EXPRESSING MODES OF MOVEMENT IN ENGLISH AND THEIR VIETNAMESE EQUIVALENTS

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING HANOI OPEN UNIVERSITY NGUYEN THI NGOC HIEN MOTION VERBS EXPRESSING MODES OF MOVEMENT IN ENGLISH AND THEIR VIETNAMESE EQUIVALENTS (ĐỘNG TỪ BIỂU THỊ PHƢƠNG THỨC CHUYỂN ĐỘNG TIẾNG ANH VÀ TƢƠNG ĐƢƠNG TRONG TIẾNG VIỆT) M.A THESIS Field: English Language Code: 8220201 Supervisor: Assoc Prof Dr HOÀNG TUYẾT MINH Ha Noi, 2018 CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY I, the undersigned, hereby certify my authority of the study project report entitled “Motion verbs expressing emotion in English and their Vietnamese equivalents.” submitted in partial fulfillment of requirement for the degree of Master in English Language Except where the reference is indicated, no other person‟s work has been used without due acknowledgement in the text of the thesis Ha Noi, 2018 Nguyễn Thị Ngọc Hiền Approved by SUPERVISOR Assoc Prof Dr Hoang Tuyet Minh Date: i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the following people for their great supports during my two – year time for the MA course First and foremost, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Assoc Prof Dr Hoang Tuyet Minh, for her enthusiastic and useful guidance, insightful comments, and encouragement without which my thesis would not have been completed My special thanks go to all my lecturers at Hanoi Open University for their precious assistance, knowledge, experience and enthusiasm in their lectures, from which I have acquired valuable knowledge and inspiration to fulfill this minor thesis I also would like to express my indebtedness to my family, my friends and colleagues who have given me constant support and love during the completion of the thesis Last but not least, my sincere thanks are for the people who will give me the precious comments after reading the graduation thesis Nguyen Thi Ngoc Hien ii ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to investigate into syntactic and semantic features of English motion verbs expressing modes of movement and their Vietnamese equivalents The eleven verbs studied are run, walk, crawl, climb, dive, stroll, jog, dance, march, jump, swim The study employed two major methods: descriptive method is used to describe mainly the syntactic and semantic features of motion verbs expressing modes of movements in English and the similarities and differences between these and their Vietnamese equivalents and comparative method is used to make a comparison between motion verbs expressing modes of movements in English and their Vietnamese equivalents in order to point out the similarities and differences between them The findings pointed out that: (i ) In terms of syntactic features, based on sentence patterns, all motion verbs expressing modes of movement are intransitive, that means, 11 motion verbs in the scope of the study have SV sentence patterns Six of them have SVO sentence pattern, they are run, walk, climb, job, jump and swim Three of them have SVOA, they are run, walk and march In short, there are two verbs having three sentence patterns, they are run and walk (ii) In terms of semantic features, they express majorly the meaning of bodily functions of movement such as (i) moving using parts of the body); (ii) moving with speed (jump, run and dance); (iii) In terms of comparison between motion verbs expressing modes of movement in English and their Vietnamese equivalents, based on the English – Vietnamese dictionaries, therefore, all the structures of the motion verbs expressing modes of movement in in source language are translated and transferred the same structures in the target language The study hopefully supplies some implications to teachers of English teaching English as a second language in Vietnam iii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS A adverbial C Co complement object complement O object Od Oi direct object indirect object S V subject verb iv LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES Table 2.1 Summary of sentence patterns in terms of verb elements and their complementations .13 Table 2.2 Fillmore‟s frames for the verbs of motion of this study 14 Table 2.3 Levin's Verbs of Motion arranged in a table 18 Table 2.4 Levin's Verbs of Motion 20 Table 2.5 Application of Faber and Mairal Us n‟s matrix (1999: ) for distinguishing features of verbs of motion 22 Table 4.1 Syntactic features of motion verbs expressing modes 36 of movement in English 36 Table 4.2 Semantic features of motion verbs expressing modes of movement in English using bodily functions 41 Table 4.3 Syntactic features of motion verbs expressing modes of movement in English and their Vietnamese equivalents 42 v TABLES OF CONTENTS CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii ABSTRACT iii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS iv LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES v Chapter INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale 1.2 Aims and Objectives of the study 1.3 Research questions 1.4 Scope of the study 1.5 Significance of the study 1.6 Structure of the study Chapter LITERATURE REVIEW .5 2.1 Previous studies 2.2 An overview of syntax and semantics 2.2.1 Theory of syntax .7 2.2.2 Theory of semantics 2.3 Overview of English Verb 10 2.3.1 Definition 10 2.3.2 Classification of verbs according to their complementation 11 2.4 An overview of motion verbs 13 2.4.1 What is motion? .13 2.4.2 What is a motion verb? 14 2.4.2 Classification of motion verbs 25 2.5 Motion verbs expressing modes of movement 25 2.6 Summary 26 Chapter 29 METHODOLOGY 29 3.2 Methods of the study 29 3.3 Data collection and data analysis .30 3.4 Summary .32 vi Chapter MOTION VERBS EXPRESSING MODES OF MOVEMENT IN ENGLISH AND THEIR VIETNAMESE EQUIVALENTS .33 4.1 Syntactic features of motion verbs expressing modes of movement in English 33 4.1.1 SV sentence pattern 33 4.1.2 SVO sentence pattern .35 4.2 Semantic features of motion verbs expressing modes of movements in English 36 4.2.2 Moving with speed 40 4.3 A comparison between motion verbs expressing modes of movement in English and their Vietnamese equivalents 42 4.3.1 In terms of syntactic features 42 4.3.2 In terms of semantic features 43 4.2.2 Moving with speed 45 4.4 Implications for teaching motion verbs expressing modes of movement in English to Vietnamese learners of English .46 4.5 Summary .47 CHAPTER 47 CONCLUSION 47 5.1 Concluding remarks 47 5.2 Limitations and suggestions for further study 48 REFERENCES 49 vii Chapter INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale Nowadays, English is considered as one of the most popular language for everyone all over the world There are many problems in learning English as listening, speaking, reading, writing, grammar, lexicology, etc Grammar plays a very important role in English, it is not easy for English learners to study Moreover, learners are affected by their mother tongue during the process of studying that causes much confusion to them However, it is not so difficult that English learners cannot study because English grammar is also systematic Theoretically, verbs are very important constituents of every sentence Particularly, the main features of verbs or motion verbs in English are dealt with in every general grammar book such as: Quirk, et al (1985), Biber et al (2000) or Huddleston et al (1985) There exist a large number of publications dealing solely with verbs, their characteristics and their semantic behavior (for example: Palmer, F.R (1985), Sinclair, J.ed (1998) or Levin, B (1993) It is also possible to find many publications dealing with specific types of verbs, for example publications specialized in modal verbs, particle verbs, phrasal verbs or motion verbs: Kudrnacova, N (2008), Tenny, C (1995) and also publications dealing only with certain characteristics of the verbs such as Comrie (2006) In Vietnamese, the main features of verbs or motion verbs are dealt with in every general grammar book such as Nguyễn Lai (197 ), Nguyễn Lai (1984) and Nguyễn Kim Thản (1984) It is also possible to find many publications dealing with specific motion verbs As has already been said above, this construction can be labeled as understudied Therefore, the study will be to shed more light on syntactic and semantic features of English motion verbs expressing modes of movement in English and their Vietnamese equivalents 1.2 Aims and Objectives of the study This study is aimed at investigating syntactic and semantic features of certain motion verbs expressing modes of movement in English and their Vietnamese equivalents to help teachers of English teach English this kind of verb group to Vietnamese learners of English effectively In order to achieve the aims, some objectives can be put forward: - Identifying syntactic and semantic features of motion verbs expressing mode of movement in English - Finding out similarities and differences between English motion verbs expressing modes of movement and their Vietnamese equivalents in terms of syntactic and semantic features - Giving some implications for teaching the motion verbs expressing modes of movement in English to Vietnamese learners of English effectively 1.3 Research questions What are the syntactic and semantic features of motion verbs expressing modes of movement in English? What are the similarities and differences between English motion verbs expressing modes of movement and their Vietnamese equivalents in terms of syntactic and semantic features? What are implications for teaching the motion verbs expressing modes of movement in English to Vietnamese learners of English effectively? 1.4 Scope of the study In English, there are seven subtypes of Motion verbs: the RUN subtype refers to a mode of motion; the ARRIVE subtype deals with motion with respect to a definite Locus; the TAKE subtype refers to causing something to be in motion with respect to a Locus; the FOLLOW subtype refers to motion with respect to something which is moving; the CARRY subtype refers to motion in juxtaposition with some moving subject; the THROW subtype describes causing something to be in motion; the DROP subtype refers to unwanted motion (R.M.W Dixon, 1991), but within the framework of this study, we focus on the motion verbs group expressing modes of movement which Dixon (1991) called them as the RUN subtype, including such as run, walk, crawl, slide, spin, roll, turn, wriggle, swing, wave, rock, shake, climb, dive, stroll, trot, gallop, jog, dance, march, jump, bounce, swim, fly, but in this study, the motion verbs expressing modes of moving by using bodily functions with a distance are chosen as the subjects of the study, they are run, walk, crawl, climb, dive, stroll, jog, dance, march, jump, swim He walks the dog at least three times a day SVOA with the verb run, for example: That car tried to run me off the road! She ran her car off the road He ran the car into a tree SVOA with the verb march, for example: She gripped Rachel’s arm and marched her through the door After examining 11 motion verbs, the syntactic features of motion verbs expressing modes of movement in terms of sentence patterns are summarized as table below: Table 4.1 Syntactic features of motion verbs expressing modes of movement in English Types run walk crawl climb dive stroll jog dance march jump swim SV x x SVO x x SVOA x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x 4.2 Semantic features of motion verbs expressing modes of movements in English According to the meaning of bodily functions of movement of motion verbs expressing modes of movement, one classified these verbs into subgroups with (i) moving using parts of the body and (ii) moving with speed as follows: 4.2.1 Moving using parts of the body 4.2.1.1 Moving with one’s legs at a speed There are five motion verbs expressing modes of movement using with one‟s legs at a speed, including walk, run, jog, march and stroll Let‟s consider in details  The motion verb walk is an activity of locomotion with one‟s legs at a speed that is slower than running, for example: Is your grandson walking yet? Walk can be used to express the movement of going with (someone) to a place by walking, for example: She walks her children home from school The nurse walked the patient to the bathroom I'll walk you to your car 36 Walk can be used to express an action that causes (an animal) to go for a walk with someone, for example: He walks the dog at least three times a day She walked the horse to the stable Walk can be used to express an action to cause (something) to move with someone while walking, for example: She walked her bike up the hill Walk can be used to express an action to move (something) in a way that is like walking, for example: They walked the heavy bookcase over to the wall by moving one end at a time He walked his fingers along the baby's belly Walk can be used to express an action to pass over, through, or along (something) by walking, for example: We walked four miles We walked the whole trail It is no longer safe to walk the streets at night She slowly walked the tightrope  The motion verb run is an activity of locomotion with one‟s legs at a speed that is faster than walking, never having both or all the feet on the ground at the same time, for example: How fast can you run? He runs faster than anyone else on the team She ran up the stairs to get her jacket We ran for the trainbut missed it I heard her scream and ran to help Run can be an action of moving about in a hurried and hectic way, for instance: ‘I've spent the whole day running round after the kids’ Run can be an action of chasing (someone) away, for instance: ‘Ah went tuh eat the mangoes but the people run mih’ Run can be an action of moving or causing to move forcefully or with a particular result, for instance: The tanker ran aground off the Shetlands 37 A woman ran a pushchair into the back of my legs’ Run can be an action of taking (someone) somewhere in a car, for instance: ‘I'll run you home’ Run can be an action of moving (of a horse) at a slow trot, for example: They caught and saddled their horses and jogged up to the high grass moorland Run can be an action of moving in an unsteady way, for example: In that evening, he jogged around the city  Jog is an action of running at a steady gentle pace, especially on a regular basis as a form of physical exercise, for instance: He began to jog along the road Right now she is jogging two miles a day  March is an action of walking in a military manner with a regular measured tread, for instance: Thousands marched behind the coffin  Stroll is also an action of walking in leisurely way, for instance: I strolled around the city 4.2.1.2 Moving using one’s body with directions Some motion verbs expressing modes of movement are using one‟s body with direction, they are jump, run, and dance Let‟s consider them in details  The verb jump is used to express someone move his body upward from the ground and often forward, backward, or sideways through the air by pushing with your legs, for example: The fans were jumping up and down with excitement Everyone was jumping for joy when we found out that we had won an award The verb jump is used to express an action to cause one‟s body to drop or fall down from something by pushing with one‟s legs, for instance: The builder jumped down off/from the ladder That boy jumped off a bridge  The verb dance is used to express an action of moving one‟s body in a way that goes with the rhythm and style of music that is being played, for example: He never learned how to dance 38 She has always loved to dance I like the song but it's really hard to dance to  The verb run is used to action of causing (a driver or vehicle) to move in a particular direction, for example: That car tried to run me off the road! She ran her car off the road He ran the car into a tree The verb run is also used to an action of travelling or spreading in a fast or uncontrolled way, for example: Whispers ran through the crowd A chill ran up/down my spine 4.2.1.3 Moving with body under water There are two motion verbs expressing modes of movement in this subgroup, that is the verb swim and dive Let‟s consider them in details  The verb swim is used to express an action of propelling the bodythourgh water by using the limbs, or by using other bodily movement, for example: They swam ashore He swims thirty lengths twice a week The verb swim is also used to express an action of arossing a particular stretch of water by swimming, for example: He swam the Channel The verb swim is used by using a specified method, for example: The racers must swim the backstroke  The verb dive is used to express an action of plunging head first into water wit one‟s arms raised over one‟s head, for example: She walked to the deep end, then she dived in he dived off the bridge for a bet Sometime, the verb dive is used to express an action of swimming under water using usually while using special equipment to help you breathe, for instance: He had been diving in the area to test equipment Many people enjoy diving on the island's coral reefs You can't dive in this water without a wet suit 4.2.1.4 Moving using one’s feet and hands; feet and knees 39 There are two motion verbs expressing modes of movement using one‟s feat and hands or feet and knees, they are climb and crawl Let‟s consider them in details:  The verb climb is used to express an action of moving or going up (something) using one‟s feet and often one‟s hands, for example: When he was a child, he often climbed trees Although he was old, he climbed the stairs himself The verb climb can be used to express an action of going up mountains, cliffs, etc., as a sport, for example: He dreams of climbing Kilimanjaro It took them six days to climb the mountain She has climbed seriously for several years now The verb climb is always followed by an adverb or preposition to express an action of moving oneself in a way that usually involves going up or down, for instance: The actors were climbing down from the stage He climbed over the fence The passengers of the sailboat climbed aboard I think she climbed in through the window  The verb crawl is express an action of moving forward on the hands and knees or by dragging the body close to the ground, for example: They crawled from under the table The verb crawl is also used to express an action of swimming using with the crawl, for example: I turn without stopping and crawled back to the deep end 4.2.2 Moving with speed Another meaning of motion verbs expressing modes of movement categoried in this study is based on the speed of movement It means in this part, motion verbs expressing modes of movement are compared among each other according to their speed In the list of 11 motion verbs of movement, each verb carries with its own meaning of speed, but not all of them express modes of movement with speed Let‟s see them in details 40  In all, jump is one of most verbs to express someone moving quickly, for example: Everyone jumped into/in the pool He jumped into/in his truck and drove away The verb jump can be used to make a sudden movement because of surprise or shock, for example: She jumped when she heard a loud knock late at night The verb jump can be used to express an ation of starting or going forward quickly, for example: She jumped to an early lead in the race She jumped off to a big lead  The verb run can be the motion verb expressing something both moving quickly and slowly, for instance: She stood up quickly and ran out the door The verb run can be used to express an action of leaving a place quickly by running, for example: When the alarm sounded, the robbers ran He dropped the gun and ran Quick! Run and get a doctor! The ambushed soldiers ran for cover They had the enemy running scared When she saw all the people in the audience, she had a sudden urge to run away  The verb dance can be used to express an action of moving quickly up and down, from side to side, etc., for example: We danced for joy when we heard the news He sat watching the leaves dancing in the breeze After investigating the meanings of motion verbs of modes of movement using bodily functions, they can be summarized as followed: Table 4.2 Semantic features of motion verbs expressing modes of movement in English using bodily functions Types of run walk crawl climb dive stroll jog dance march jump swim moving with one‟s legs at x x x x x 41 a speed one‟s body x x x with directions body under x x water one‟s feet x x and hands; feet and knees Moving with x x x speed 4.3 A comparison between motion verbs expressing modes of movement in English and their Vietnamese equivalents 4.3.1 In terms of syntactic features Because the equivalents in this study were mainly investigated in the English – Vietnamese dictionaries, so all the structures of the motion verbs expressing modes of movement in in source language are translated and transferred the same structures in the target language That means all the Vietnamese equivalents of motion verbs expressing modes of movement in English are both intransitive and transitive verbs stroll jog danc dạo chậm nhảy x x x x x SVO x x SVOA x x x swim b dive lặn x bơi l clim trƣờn trèo x h jump craw bò, x hành nhảy lên walk SV Vietnamese e marc run chaỵ English diễu Table 4.3 Syntactic features of motion verbs expressing modes of movement in English and their Vietnamese equivalents x x x x x x x Let‟s see the following examples: - With SV sentence pattern: By the time he was eight, you wouldn’t know he had a problem when you saw him walk (Năm lên tám, nhìn bước đi, bạn biết 42 chân có vấn đề) The baby can’t walk yet, but she crawls everywhere (Đứa trẻ khơng thể được, bò khắp nơi) He never learned how to dance (Anh ta chưa học nhảy cả.) - With SVO sentence pattern: He continued to run four to five miles a day, every day - even the day he had a 103 - degree fever (Joey đặn tập chạy từ đền dặm ngày, kể bị sốt cao) - With SVOA sentence pattern: She walks her children home from school (Cô dắt đưa đến trường) The nurse walked the patient to the bathroom (Nữ y ta dìu bệnh nhân nhà vệ sinh) - With SVOA sentence pattern: She ran her car off the road (Cô ý đưa xe khỏi đường) He ran the car into a tree (Anh ý đâm xe vào gốc cây) 4.3.2 In terms of semantic features After investigating the data, it is found out that the meaning of motion verbs expressing modes of movement are very plentiful However, there is not a clear regulation for each structure Due to its concrete context in each sentence, they could have different translational meanings The following are some of their Vietnamese equivalents in terms of semantic in the scope of the data of the study 4.3.2.1 Moving using parts of the body 4.3.2.1.1 Moving with one’s legs at a speed There are five verbs of motion verbs expressing modes of moving using with one‟s legs at a speed, including walk, run, jog, march and stroll and the following are their Vietnamese equivalents Let‟s consider in details English Vietnamese 43 Chạy, bỏ chạy, đuổi theo, xông vào, chạy vội … Run March Đi bộ, (lên, vào), bước (đến, vào, qua, sang), tiến (vào, lên), tản bộ, cùng, ghé, dắt, hộ tống, kèm … Chạy chậm đều, chậm Diễu hành, tuần hành, bước , hành quân, đưa đi, dẫn đi, bắt đi… Stroll Đi dạo, tản Walk Jog Let‟s see the following examples: He ran to meet us (Nó chạy lại gặp chúng tơi) We walked slowly home (Chúng từ từ nhà) We walk the fields looking for wild flowers (Chúng dạo cánh đồng để tìm hoa dại) Thousands of soldiers marched in the square on the Independent Day (Hàng nghìn chiến sĩ diễu hành quảng trường ngày Quốc khánh) 4.2.1.2 Moving using one’s body with directions The following are some motion verbs expressing modes of movement are using one‟s body with direction, jump, run, and dance in English with their Vietnamese equivalents Let‟s consider them in details English Vietnamese Jump nhảy ra, nhảy bổ vào/ lên, nhảy lên Run chạy về, chạy tới, chạy lui, chạy Dance tung nhẹ, nhấc lên, nhấc xuống, tâng tâng, Let‟s consider the following examples: He was late to school, so he jumped the train (Vì bị muộn học, nên nhảy bổ lên tàu, He had to run to catch the bus (Nó phải chạy để xem điều xảy đến.) She danced the little child round the room (Chị ta tâng tâng nhẹ đứa bé vòng tay quanh phòng) 44 4.2.1.3 Moving with body under water There are two motion verbs expressing modes of movement in this subgroup, that is the verb swim and dive in English and their Vietnamese equivalents are bơi, and lặn, nhảy Let‟s see the following examples: I could swim when I was (Tơi bơi lên 5) He swam the Channel in 1999 (Anh ta bơi qua Eo biển Channel năm 1999) She swam her horse across the river (Chị ta cho ngựa bơi qua song) At that minute, he dove without thinking (Lúc đó, lặn mà khơng nghĩ gì) He dived from the bridge to rescue the drowning child (Anh ta từ cầu lao xuống nước để cứu đứa bé chết đuối.) 4.2.1.4 Moving using one’s feet and hands; feet and knees There are two motion verbs expressing modes of movement using one‟s feat and hands or feet and knees in English, climb and crawl, and their Vietnamese equivalents are trèo, leo, trườn, bò Let‟s consider the following examples: He climbed the wall in a minute (He anh chèo tường phút) The injured tried their best to crawl away (Những người bị thương cố trườn đi.) 4.2.2 Moving with speed In terms of moving with speed, there are three motion verbs expressing modes of movements, jump, run and dance Their Vietnamese equivalents are as follows: English Vietnamese Jump Lao nhanh, nhảy tót đi, đứng dậy Run chạy bay, chạy biến, tẩu thoát Dance nhảy lên Let‟s see the following examples: He heard that and jumped up (Anh ta nghe liền đứng dậy.) 45 She jumped to the door when she heard a knock at night (Cô ta lao nhanh cửa nghe thấy tiếng ngõ cửa đêm.) She stood up quickly and ran out the door (Cơ bật dậy nhanh chóng chạy biến cửa.) We danced for joy when we heard the news (Chúng nhảy lên sung sướng nghe tin.) 4.4 Implications for teaching motion verbs expressing modes of movement in English to Vietnamese learners of English According to the results fo the present study, many implications for teaching the English verbs contain the motion verbs expressing modes of movement can be suggested These implications can be applied as a generic framework or a model for teaching the the motion verbs expressing modes of movement and their Vietnamese equivalents Motion verbs play a very important role in everyday conversation in general as well as the motion verbs expressing modes of movement in particular In order to master their syntactic and semantic features is not an easy task Therefore, during the process of teaching this verb group, the teachers of English should pay attend to the following: - First, teachers should teach students kinds of English verbs carefully; classification of verbs, what intensive and what extensive verbs are, in order to build the foundation on English verbs in general Students must gain all types of sentence: SVA, SVC; SV, SVO, SVOO, SVOA, SVOC - Secondly, teachers should explain their students general knowledge about motion and motion verbs That means what motion is and motion verbs are? How many kinds of motion verbs What are motion verbs expressing modes of movement in general and what are motion verbs expressing modes of movement according to the bodily functions of movement in particular - Thirdly, teachers should indicate the syntactic features of motion verbs expressing modes of movement, that is: SV, SVO and SVOA What motion verbs expressing modes of movement have which sentence patterns It means that while leanring the verbs in general, motion verbs expressing modes of movement in particular, students have to learn the structure of each motion verbs 46 - Fourthly, teachers should explain the semantic features of each motion verb expressing modes of movement in different context - Fifthly, it is very necessary for teachers of English teaching syntactic and semantic features of motion verbs expressing modes of movement with their Vietnamese equivalents It is hoped that learners of English will know how to use this kind of motion verb effectively in every context of communication 4.5 Summary This chapter has dealt with the syntactic and semantic features of English motion verbs expressing modes of movement and then a comparison between these matters with their Vietnamese equivalents has made As the results of the study, the implications for teachers of English teaching English motion verbs expressing modes of movement effectively CHAPTER CONCLUSION 5.1 Concluding remarks Based on the theoretical framework and the data taken from such sources as English – English dictionaries, English – Vietnamese dictionaries, the study has discussed the syntactic and semantic features of motion verbs expressing modes of movement There are eleven English motion verbs expressing modes of movement, they are run, walk, crawl, climb, dive, stroll, jog, dance, march, jmp, and swim At first, all the syntactic features and semantic features of English motion verbs expressing modes of movement were under investigation carefully and then the study pointed out the similarities and differences between English motion verbs expressing modes of movement and their Vietnamese equivalents It comes to the conclusions that: In terms of syntactic features, based on sentence patterns, all motion verbs expressing modes of movement are intransitive, that means, 11 motion verbs in the scope of the study have SV sentence patterns Six of them have SVO sentence pattern, they are run, walk, climb, job, jump and swim Three of them have SVOA, they are run, walk and march In short, there are two 47 verbs having three sentence patterns, they are run and walk, that‟s why some author called this kind of verb group as run verb groups In terms of semantic features, based on the meaning of motion verbs expressing modes of bodily functions of movement, the meanings of this motion verb group are very plentiful They express majorly the meaning of bodily functions of movement such as (i) moving using parts of the body, saying moving with one‟s legs at a speed (walk, run, jog, march and stroll), moving using one‟s body with directions (jump, run, and dance), moving with body under water (swim and dive), moving using one‟s feet and hands; feet and knees (climb and crawl); (ii) moving with speed (jump, run and dance) In terms of comparison between motion verbs expressing modes of movement in English and their Vietnamese equivalents, based on the English – Vietnamese dictionaries, therefore, all the structures of the motion verbs expressing modes of movement in in source language are translated and transferred the same structures in the target language That means all the Vietnamese equivalents of motion verbs expressing modes of movement in English are both intransitive and transitive verbs syntactically Semantically, it is found out that the meaning of English motion verbs expressing modes of movement and their Vietnamese equivalents are very plentiful However, there is not a clear regulation for each structure Due to its concrete context in each sentence, they could have different translational meanings 5.2 Limitations and suggestions for further study In the framework of the study, the study only investigated the syntactic and semantic features of 11 motion verbs expressing modes of movement in terms of their bodily functions, the other features of movement are not dealt with The comparison between features of 11 English motion verbs expressing modes of movement and their Vietnamese equivalents are based on English – English dictionaries and English – Vietnamese dictionaries, therefore the data analysis is limited It is hoped that the study will examine many other motion verbs expressing modes of movement and the other features of motion verbs, such as from pragmatics or cross-cultural perspectives 48 REFERENCES Biber, D et al (2000) Longman Grammar of Spoken and Written English London: Longman Comrie (2006) Aspect: An Introduction to the Study of Verbal Aspect and Related Problems Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Crystal, D (1992), Introducing Linguistics London: Penguin Dixon, R.M.W (1970) Syntactic orientation as a semantic property, in Mathematical Linguistics and Automatic Translation, Report NSF – 24 Harvard University Computation Laboratory Dixon, R.M.W (1970) A new approach to English grammar on semantic principles Claendon Press- Oxford Fillmore, C FrameNet http://framenet.icsi.berkeley.edu/ (2005-05-23) Flawley, W (1992) Linguistic Semantics Washington: Georgetown University Press Huddleston et al (1985) The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language New York: Academic Press Huddleston, R (1984) Introduction to the Grammar of English Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 10 Huddleston, R (1988) English Grammar; 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What are the similarities and differences between English motion verbs expressing modes of movement and their Vietnamese equivalents in terms of syntactic... semantic features of English motion verbs expressing modes of movement and the Vietnamese equivalents are made Implications for teaching English motion verbs expressing modes of movement are given