We report the synthesis of guanidino amino acids (GuAA), which are structurally related to Arg and resemble a dipeptide consisting of alpha- and gamma-amino acid with a guanidinium group in the main chain. The compounds are available with different protecting groups in gram amounts and are intended as synthetic building blocks for the construction of synthetic oxoanion or peptide receptors. Tyr, Trp or dansyl-functionalized Lys can be introduced as the alpha-amino acid part, which leads to luminescent GuAAs. The compounds signal carboxylate binding in MeOH, DMSO and buffered water by change of the emission intensity. The property may find use in the construction of chemosensors.