Some semantic and syntactic features of the lexical group meaning “all, whole” in ancient and medieval Vietnamese texts

Abstract

This article examines the operation of words conveying an overall, total meaning that appear in the structures of noun phrases and syntax in Vietnamese from multiple perspectives: quantity, position, function, and semantics, based on data from 15 written language sources. The results show that the group of words expressing an overall or total meaning is extensive, possessing not only the ability to stand independently but also to combine with other synonymous words within the group, allowing for a wide range of combination patterns. The research findings also show that some lexical words have undergone grammaticalization, becoming functional words to meet the demands of grammatical cognition.