Grammatical metaphor: A look into Vietnamese parts of speech (From a native speaker’s perspective)

Abstract

This article deals with the issue of Grammatical Metaphor in Vietnamese Grammar, a relatively . new concept for an isolating language. Previously, Lexical Metaphor has been extensively analyzed  from the perspective of Traditional Semantics, which is correct but insufficient. Recently, the application of Functional Grammar Theory in Vietnamese has been opened up new multidimensional approaches to this issue. In this article, we explore Grammatical Metaphor in relation to Vietnamese Parts of Speech, focusing on both  semantic and pragmatic perspectives. It involve a special semantic shift in words  usage that occupies a unique place  in the Grammatical Metaphore. It has the function of grammatical support for Vietnammese utterances. Native speakers choose these forms  according to the pragmatic principles.