Corpus-Based Behavioral Profile Study of English Synonyms: Amazing, Astonishing, Stunning, Surprising, Startling, Staggering, and Shocking

Employing the British National Corpus (BNC) as the source data and #LancsBox X as the tool, this study adopted a corpus-based behavioural profile approach to examine seven adjective near-synonyms (amazing, astonishing, stunning, surprising, startling, staggering, and shocking), focusing on the typical types of nouns they each modify and their register distribution patterns. The results showed that although these adjectives share a central meaning, they differ in usage patterns and formality levels, which complements the current inadequacies in describing these adjectives. Moreover, the study has confirmed the theory and applicability of the BP approach for investigating the semantic and usage patterns of synonyms in a set.