Translation Translator Skills 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What does 'source language' refer to in translation?
- The language being translated from (Correct answer)
- The language being translated into
- The translator's native tongue
- The most spoken global language
Correct answer: The language being translated from
The source language is the original language of the text being translated.
Question 2: What is the 'target language' in a translation project?
- The original document language
- The language the text is translated into (Correct answer)
- The official language of the agency
- The language of the client's headquarters
Correct answer: The language the text is translated into
The target language is the language into which the content is rendered.
Question 3: A skilled translator should typically translate primarily into which language?
- Any language they have studied
- Their weakest language for practice
- Their native or dominant language (Correct answer)
- Only the source language
Correct answer: Their native or dominant language
Best practice is to translate into one's native or dominant language for natural fluency.
Question 4: What is a 'false friend' in translation?
- A misspelled cognate
- A word that looks similar across languages but differs in meaning (Correct answer)
- An unreliable client
- A synonym in the same language
Correct answer: A word that looks similar across languages but differs in meaning
False friends are words resembling each other across languages but having different meanings.
Question 5: Why is cultural competence important for a translator?
- It speeds up typing
- It eliminates the need for proofreading
- It helps convey meaning, tone, and context accurately (Correct answer)
- It reduces word count
Correct answer: It helps convey meaning, tone, and context accurately
Cultural competence ensures idioms, references, and tone are conveyed appropriately.
Question 6: What is 'localization' compared to plain translation?
- Translating word for word only
- Adapting content to a specific locale's culture and conventions (Correct answer)
- Shortening text for mobile
- Translating only legal documents
Correct answer: Adapting content to a specific locale's culture and conventions
Localization adapts content to a target locale's cultural and regional norms beyond literal translation.
Question 7: Which skill helps a translator handle texts in unfamiliar subject areas?
- Ignoring difficult terms
- Strong research and terminology skills (Correct answer)
- Translating faster
- Using only one dictionary
Correct answer: Strong research and terminology skills
Research skills let translators verify specialized terminology and context accurately.
Translation Translator Skills 2
What does 'source language' refer to in translation?