It has been a decade since argument and argumentation were introduced in science education literature in South Korea. The word "argument" has been translated into three different Korean terms in literature. The purpose of this study was to clarify those translated terms by examining how the terms were defined and used in Korean education research literature. From a philosophical perspective on the diversity of translation, we examined definitions of argument and argumentation, research topics in papers published in major international journals on science education, and reviewed relevant science education papers published in South Korean journals. We reviewed 79 papers published since the year 2000 in major international journals on science education, whose titles have terms argument and/or argumentation and 37 Korean science education papers whose titles have terms translated from the two English words. Findings showed that Korean researchers defined argument and argumentation either in a general sense or in a specific sense such as science investigation or group work aspects, depending on research contexts. Researchers in Korea rarely mentioned the diversity of translation. If they mentioned it, justification for a specific translation of the term was not provided except for in one case. When the same foreign literature was reviewed to define "argument" or "argumentation, different Korean words were used to translate the same two terms. This indicated to the researchers that the translation of the terms was not related to their definitions of them. On the other hand, each research group used a certain translation of the term consistently, indicating that translations might be based on research tradition. Based on the findings, a position on translation of the term is proposed in terms of professionalism and communication between research groups.