ATA - American Translators Association Target Language Proficiency Questions and Answers

Question 1

A translator is adapting a user manual for a complex piece of industrial machinery from German into English. The German source text is dense and highly technical. To demonstrate strong target language proficiency, what should be the translator's primary focus for the English text?

Accepted Answer

Using clear, concise, and unambiguous language appropriate for a technical user manual, even if it means restructuring sentences.

Answer

Strong target language proficiency involves mastering the specific register and conventions of the text type (in this case, a user manual). The primary goal is clarity and usability for the end-user, which requires clear, idiomatic, and unambiguous language, often necessitating a departure from the source text's sentence structure to sound natural in the target language.

Question 2

According to the ATA's criteria for certification, what is the most critical demonstration of target language proficiency?

Accepted Answer

The ability to write at a level comparable to a well-educated native speaker, producing a text that is ready for publication.

Answer

The ATA certification exam evaluates a candidate's ability to produce a professional-quality translation. The benchmark for target language proficiency is the ability to write like a well-educated native speaker in a professional context, creating a final product that is grammatically correct, stylistically appropriate, and ready for publication without significant editing.

Question 3

Which of the following errors most directly points to a fundamental deficiency in target language proficiency according to the ATA's Framework for Standardized Error Marking?

Accepted Answer

A poor word choice that is grammatically correct but not idiomatic.

Answer

While all errors are penalized, a poor word choice that results in an unidiomatic expression is a strong indicator of a lack of target language proficiency. It shows that the translator may know the dictionary definition of a word but not its proper usage, collocation, or connotation, which is a core writing skill in the target language. Misunderstanding the source text is a comprehension error, while formatting and punctuation are distinct error categories.

Question 4

A translator is translating a French marketing slogan, 'jeter l'argent par les fenêtres,' into English for a financial services company's blog post. A literal translation is 'to throw money through the windows.' How can the translator best demonstrate high target language proficiency?

Accepted Answer

Find a well-known, stylistically equivalent English idiom, such as 'to pour money down the drain.'

Answer

High target language proficiency is demonstrated by the ability to find a functionally and stylistically equivalent expression in the target language. Choosing a common English idiom like 'to pour money down the drain' preserves the meaning and the idiomatic, engaging tone of the original marketing slogan, which is more effective than a literal translation or a plain, non-idiomatic rendering.

Question 5

In the context of the ATA exam, a 'grammar' error in the target language refers to a mistake related to:

Accepted Answer

The relationship between words in a sentence, such as subject-verb agreement or incorrect case.

Answer

According to the ATA's grading standards, a grammar error specifically involves the rules governing the relationship between words and constructions in a sentence. This includes issues like incorrect subject-verb agreement, improper use of prepositions, incorrect noun/pronoun cases, and other structural rules of the language. Spelling, word choice (usage), and meaning transfer are separate error categories.

ATA - American Translators Association Practice Test

ATA - American Translators Association Practice Test

ATA - American Translators Association Target Language Proficiency Questions and Answers