I’m the newest member of The Language Factory team and entering the world of translation has definitely been a learning curve!
It’s taken me some time to get to grips with all the translation phrases and expressions. With that in mind I’ve put together a list of the top 5 translation terms I’ve come to recognise.
The combination of the language you would like to translate from and the language you need to translate into.
Experienced translators may work with more than one language pair, but usually they usually translate into their native language. For example, a translator may translate both Italian and French into their native language of English.
Computer aided translation (CAT) software breaks down translations into sentences or segments and then analyses if they have been translated before. CAT tools are often linked with what’s called a translation memory, which is the database where the translation segments are saved for later use. This is normally done in language pairs, for example, English into Chinese.
New words are brand new phrases or sentences that are unique to the translation project and haven’t been translated before.
New words are the opposite of repetitions, which are repeated phrases or sentences. Use of repetitions may help to reduce translation times, as the translator only needs to review the translation, rather than translating it from scratch.
Back translation, as the term suggests, is translating back into the original language to check for any differences.
However, proofreading, or checks by a second linguist, is a more effective method of quality control and a text that has been translated and proofread is the gold standard for quality.
More than just translation, localisation is the cultural adaptation of the content to be translated, based on the local context and local market. It is sometimes referred to as linguistic adaptation and including localisation as part of your translation ensures your text is suitable for your target market.
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