A Contrastive Analysis of Conceptual Metaphors in Vietnamese and Korean Expressions of Sweetness Focusing on “Ngọt/Ngọt Ngào” and “달다/달콤하다”

Abstract

This qualitative contrastive study examines conceptual metaphors expressed through sweet-taste terms in Vietnamese and Korean, focusing on ngọt/ngọt ngào and 달다/달콤하다. The data comprise dictionary senses and attested examples documented in previous studies of taste terms, semantic extension, and conceptual metaphor. The analysis distinguishes contextual meanings from basic gustatory meanings, groups expressions by target domains, and compares the mappings and lexical realization patterns in the two languages. The findings reveal shared mappings in which the pleasurable experience of sweetness structures positive emotions, love, attractive sounds and speech, desirable outcomes, rest, dreams, and other valued experiences. Expressions of sweetness may also acquire negative evaluative meanings when they are used to conceptualize temptation, flattery, or an attractive appearance that conceals risk. A major cross-linguistic difference concerns lexical packaging: Vietnamese ngọt extends productively into several abstract domains, whereas Korean commonly distributes these functions among 달다, 달콤하다, and the bound form 단-. Thus, ngọt and 달다 correspond at the prototypical level but are not fully equivalent on a one-to-one basis. The study contributes to Vietnamese–Korean contrastive semantics and offers implications for translation and vocabulary instruction.