A corpus-based study of near-synonyms: assess, appraise, and evaluate

This research examines the distinctions among the near-synonymous verbs 'appraise,' 'assess,' and 'evaluate,' focusing on their frequency, distribution across genres, subject and object noun collocations, and semantic preferences using data from the Corpus of Contemporary American English (COCA). The analysis reveals these verbs are predominantly found in academic texts. Collocation analysis demonstrates minimal overlap in noun collocates and semantic preferences among the three verbs. 'Appraise' pertains to evaluating assets, 'assess' and 'evaluate' are associated with structured evaluation processes in academic and professional contexts, particularly within medical and educational fields. The differences between ‘assess’ and ‘evaluate’ are that ‘appraise’ has a wider range of object noun collocates and ‘evaluate’ tends to occur with object noun collocates relevant to the quality or attribute of something. The study highlights the distinctions between these verbs, emphasizing their importance for precise language use.