A-Language
It is the first language you learn, like the one you speak at home. It’s a fancy way to refer to your native language or mother tongue. So, if you’re born in Nepal, your A-language is Nepalese. A strong A-language is the foundation of a translator’s skills. It’s like the stone at the bottom of a wall. Without it, the wall falls. Translators need a strong foundation in their A-Language to produce high-quality, accurate, and culturally appropriate translations.
Accuracy
Accuracy refers to the degree to which the translated text (TT) faithfully and correctly reflects the meaning and nuances of the original source text (ST).
B-Language
B-language is a foreign language that an a translator has near-native fluency in. They can accurately and fluently translate into this language from their A-language (native language or language of near-native fluency).
Back Translation
Back Translation is the process of translating a translated text (TT) back into the original source language (ST). This technique is often used as a quality control measure to assess the accuracy and effectiveness of the initial translation.
Character Limit
When translating software, especially for mobile apps, it’s important to keep text short. The “character limit” is the maximum number of letters, numbers, and symbols a piece of text can have. This is because mobile screens are small. Some translation tools, like Smartcat, let project managers set these limits for each piece of text that needs translation.
Client Onboarding
Client onboarding is the streamlined process of bringing a new client up to speed with the your working style, process, and communication methods. Check out our client onboarding checklist to compare with yours.
Confidentiality Clause
A confidentiality clause in a contract is a promise to keep specific information secret. It’s an agreement that you won’t share certain details with anyone else.
Culture-Specific Terms
Culture-specific terms are words or phrases tied to a particular culture. They can be tricky to translate because they often don’t have a direct equivalent in other languages. Think of slang, idioms, or references to specific customs.
Dialects
Dialects are like different versions of the same language.
People speaking different dialects can usually understand each other, but there are still differences. For example, American and British English speakers understand each other, but a Brazilian Portuguese speaker might have trouble with European Portuguese. When you need something translated, especially for a language with dialects, it’s important to know who you’re trying to reach.
Sometimes, you can even ask for a “dialect-neutral” translation, which tries to avoid using words specific to any one dialect.
Direct Clients
Direct clients are businesses that need translation services but aren’t translation agencies.
Working directly with these clients often means you can charge higher rates. However, it also means you’ll spend more time on things like finding clients (sales and marketing) and building relationships with them. Since these companies usually don’t have their own translation teams, they might also need you to handle extra tasks like editing, proofreading, and preparing files for translation (localization engineering).
DNT
DNT stands for “Do Not Translate.” This acronym is commonly used in translation projects by translators and project managers to indicate that specific terms, phrases, or elements should remain in their original language, preserving their intended meaning and impact.
Here are some common scenarios where DNT is used:
- Brand Names and Trademarks: Preserving the original name and branding is crucial for maintaining brand identity and recognition.
- Slogans and Taglines: Catchy slogans and taglines often have specific meanings and connotations in the original language that are difficult to replicate in translation.
- Technical Terms and Acronyms: Technical terms and acronyms often have established meanings within a specific field, and translating them could lead to confusion or misinterpretation.
- Cultural References: Some phrases or references may have specific cultural meanings that would be lost or altered in translation.
Equivalence
In translation, equivalence refers to the ideal situation where the translated text (TT) perfectly captures the meaning, tone, and impact of the original source text (ST) in the target language. It’s about achieving a balance between accuracy and naturalness in the TT, ensuring that the message is not only understood but also resonates with the target audience in the same way as it did with the source audience.
True equivalence is often a challenging goal to achieve, especially when dealing with complex texts, cultural nuances, or idiomatic expressions. However, it remains the ultimate objective for translators, as it ensures that the communication remains effective and impactful across languages and cultures.
False Friends
False friends are words in different languages that look or sound similar but have different meanings. Languages that share a common ancestor (like Romance languages: Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese) often have more false friends. For example, “Exit” in English means “salida” in Spanish, not “éxito,” which means “success.”
Freelance
A freelancer is someone who works for themselves, offering their skills to different clients. They usually work on individual projects, rather than being employed by one company full-time.
Freelance Platform
Freelance translation platforms are websites that connect translators who work independently with clients who need translation services. Explore more about translation platforms new translators can start with for freelance jobs.
Globalization
Globalization is the process of making a product or content accessible to a global audience.
Hourly Rate
In translation, hourly rates are usually used for things other than translation itself, like interpreting, managing projects, or formatting documents (desktop publishing). Transcreation (creative adaptation of content) is one exception where hourly rates are becoming more common. Even when translators charge “per word,” it’s still important to keep track of how fast they work. This helps them make sure they’re earning a fair amount per hour.
Language Code
A language code is a short combination of letters or numbers used to represent a specific language. For example, “ES” stands for Spanish.
Medical Translation
Medical translation involves translating documents like health records, prescriptions, and drug information. It’s considered one of the most demanding types of translation because it requires very specialized knowledge of medicine. Translators often need specific certifications, and some translation companies focus exclusively on medical translation.
Naturalness
Naturalness in translation means how well the translated text flows and sounds like it was originally written in the target language by a native speaker. It should read smoothly and not sound awkward or forced. See more: Skopos Theory, Cicero’s Principles of Translation
NDA
NDA stands as the short form of Non-disclosure agreement. It is a legal document that protects confidential information among you and your clients.
Placeholders
In software translation, placeholders (sometimes called variables) are like blanks in a sentence that will be filled in later. For example, in “Hey %firstName, you have %count items in your cart,” “%firstName” and “%count” are placeholders. The software uses these placeholders to insert specific information.
It’s crucial that translators don’t translate placeholders. If they did, the software wouldn’t know what to put in those spots. Some translation tools let project managers mark these placeholders so translators can’t accidentally change them.
Source Language (SL)
The source language is the language the original text was written in before it was translated.
Source Text (ST)
The Source Text is the original language text that needs to be translated into another language.
Sworn Translation
A sworn translation is a translation that’s officially certified by a qualified translator. This certification usually involves a seal or stamp from a governing body. In many places, a sworn translation is considered an official, legal document. Here’s a quick guide to sworn translation.
Target Language (TL)
The target language is the language the text is translated into.
Target Text (TT)
The Target Text is the resulting text after the Source Text has been translated into the desired language.
Untranslatability
Untranslatability means that it’s sometimes difficult, or even impossible, to perfectly capture the full meaning and feeling of a text when translating it. This happens because of differences between languages, cultures, and the ideas behind the words.
Website Localization
Website localization is translating and adapting a website for different languages and cultures. It’s similar to other types of localization (like software or game translation), but it has its own unique challenges. These include working with website content management systems (CMS). Here’s a quick guide to website localization.
