Ambiguity in Vietnamese and English advertisements

Abstract

Ambiguity in advertising is a common linguistic strategy that creates multiple interpretations to attract customers’ attention and stimulate their curiosity. By analyzing several examples from Vietnamese and English advertising slogans, this study identifies two main types of ambiguity: lexical ambiguity (caused by polysemy or homonyms) and structural ambiguity. It also highlights the effects of ambiguity in advertising, including creating strong impressions and capturing attention, enhancing persuasive impact, evoking multidimensional associations, appealing to a broad audience, stimulating emotions and fostering empathy, generating a sense of superiority, establishing brand positioning, and reinforcing brand identity. Thus, ambiguity in advertising slogans serves as a powerful tool to enhance communication effectiveness and strengthen brand influence.