STC Professional Evaluation 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: When evaluating a translation for a legal contract, which criterion is considered most critical?
- Stylistic elegance
- Terminological precision and legal equivalence (Correct answer)
- Sentence length consistency
- Use of formal register throughout
Correct answer: Terminological precision and legal equivalence
Legal translations require precise terminological equivalence to ensure the same rights and obligations are expressed in the target language.
Question 2: A professional evaluator notices a translator used 'sentencia' for both 'sentence' (prison) and 'sentence' (grammatical). This error is classified as:
- A register error
- A polysemy/disambiguation error (Correct answer)
- A syntax error
- A cultural adaptation error
Correct answer: A polysemy/disambiguation error
Failing to distinguish between multiple meanings of a source-language word (polysemy) and selecting the correct target equivalent is a disambiguation error.
Question 3: Which evaluation framework assigns weighted penalty points to errors based on their severity and impact on meaning?
- The Skopos theory
- The ASTM F2575 standard
- The MQM (Multidimensional Quality Metrics) framework (Correct answer)
- The ATA Division scoring rubric
Correct answer: The MQM (Multidimensional Quality Metrics) framework
MQM provides a granular error typology and allows evaluators to assign weighted penalty points reflecting error severity.
Question 4: In a summative evaluation of a translation, what is the primary goal?
- Coaching the translator on improvement strategies
- Determining whether the translation meets a defined quality threshold (Correct answer)
- Identifying all errors for the translator's education
- Providing feedback for a future revision
Correct answer: Determining whether the translation meets a defined quality threshold
Summative evaluation judges final quality against a standard, as opposed to formative evaluation which guides improvement.
Question 5: An evaluator finds that a medical translation omitted a contraindication present in the source text. This is categorized as a:
- Fluency error
- Critical accuracy error (omission) (Correct answer)
- Register error
- Terminology preference issue
Correct answer: Critical accuracy error (omission)
Omitting safety-critical information in a medical text is a critical accuracy error with potential for patient harm.
Question 6: What does inter-rater reliability measure in translation evaluation?
- How consistently a single evaluator scores the same text over time
- The degree to which different evaluators assign the same scores to the same translation (Correct answer)
- The accuracy of automated quality estimation tools
- How well a translation matches its intended purpose
Correct answer: The degree to which different evaluators assign the same scores to the same translation
Inter-rater reliability assesses whether multiple independent evaluators produce consistent results when scoring the same translation.
Question 7: When using a sampling approach for translation evaluation, the evaluator should prioritize which segments?
- The first and last paragraphs only
- Segments that are statistically random plus high-risk sections such as technical or legal content (Correct answer)
- The shortest segments to save time
- Segments the client specifically highlights as important
Correct answer: Segments that are statistically random plus high-risk sections such as technical or legal content
Best-practice sampling combines random selection with targeted review of high-risk content to balance efficiency and thoroughness.
STC Professional Evaluation 2
When evaluating a translation for a legal contract, which criterion is considered most critical?