Translation studiesLesson 3 of 3 in the course Localisation and technology

Computer-Assisted Translation Tools: Memory, Search, Alignment, and Augmented Translation

5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 5 match pairs · 5 fill-in sentences · English

Save course
Lesson progress
0 / 5

Your progress is kept in this browser only.Sign up to save it

Summary

Computer-assisted translation (CAT) tools help human translators work more efficiently and consistently. This lesson explains how CAT differs from machine translation, what CAT tools commonly do, and how translation memory and other utilities support the translation process.

Computer-aided translation (CAT), also called computer-assisted translation or computer-aided human translation (CAHT), uses software to assist a human translator. The translator creates the translation; the software facilitates parts of the work.

All flashcards

How does CAT differ from MT?
In CAT, a human translator creates the translation and software assists the work. In MT, a computer generates the translation, though people may prepare or revise the text.
What is a segment in a translation memory workflow?
A segment is a manageable unit of text, such as a sentence, heading, list item, paragraph, or clause, that the tool handles during translation.
How does a translation memory help with a new document?
It searches stored source-and-target segments and offers a previous translation when it finds a relevant match. The translator can reuse or adapt it, or create a new translation.
What information might a TM database store besides the translated segment?
It may store details such as the segment’s creation date, last access, and translator name, in addition to the source segment and its translation.
What is the purpose of project-management software in translation?
It organizes translation projects into workflows, assigns tasks, and tracks their progress.

Quiz questions

  1. What distinguishes computer-assisted translation from machine translation?Answer: A human translator produces the translation with software support.
  2. What is the goal of augmented translation?Answer: To integrate useful assistance into a human translator’s working environment.
  3. What does interactive machine translation offer while a human translator works?Answer: Translation hypotheses that the translator can consider while composing.
  4. Which tool shows occurrences of a word or expression together with their context in a corpus?Answer: A concordancer.
  5. Why can support for several source-file formats be useful in a CAT tool?Answer: It lets translators work with document content without relying on the original software for most translation tasks.

Based on the Wikipedia article Computer-assisted translation, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Adapted into a summary, flashcards and quizzes.

More in Translation studies

All Translation studies lessons
Translation studiesMachine Translation: Approaches, Challenges, Uses, and Evaluation5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 4 gamesPlay free →Translation studiesLocalisation Across Markets: Adaptation, Workflows, and Language Technologies5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 4 gamesPlay free →