Translation dictionary
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A translation dictionary (or sometimes translator) is a specialized lexicon designed for giving users rough equivalences of words and phrase equivalences between two distinct languages. A user desiring a translation using a translation dictionary may start with the words or phrases in his own language, the source language, and reference words or phrases in the foreign language, or target language, for speaking and writing. Conversely, for listening and reading works in a foreign tongue, there is a second section of the dictionary designed for converting the foreign expressions as the source back to the user's own language (as the target). For example, an "English-Spanish Translation Dictionary" will include one section for translations from English to Spanish, and one for Spanish to English, though both sections will be designed with the English speaker in mind, as indicated by 'English' appearing first in the language pair.
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[edit] Available translation dictionaries
Driven by market forces and the ambitions of linguists, translation dictionaries exist for nearly every combination of popular languages:
- English Language
- English-Spanish
- English-French
- English-German
- English-Italian
- English-Polish
- English-Russian
- English-Japanese
- English-Chinese
- English-Arabic
- etc.
- Spanish Language
- Español-Inglés or Spanish-English
- Español-Francés or Spanish-French
- Español-Alemán or Spanish-German
- Español-Ruso or Spanish-Russian
- etc.
- Other Languages
- (A myriad of offerings and possibilities exist.)
[edit] Varieties
Translation dictionaries range greatly in size, scope, and form. Some are included as compilations in larger dictionaries. Most travelling translation dictionaries are of a hand-held or vest-pocket variety, designed as instant on-the-spot aids for travellers in foreign countries. Many vest-pocket-sized electronic translation dictionaries, often called translators, offer audio clips of pronunciations.
[edit] Manufacturers of hand-held electronic translators
- Besta
- Brookstone
- Ectaco
- firststreet
- Franklin Electronic Publishers
- Lingo
- LingvoSoft
- Palm
- Seiko
- Sharper Image
- Wizcom
[edit] Fictional translation dictionaries
In Douglas Adams' Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, a mythical creature called a Babel Fish was inserted into a traveller's ear to provide instant, fluid translations between interstellar travellers. The utopian idea of such a creature lead to SYSTRAN's licensing of the name for their own computer-assisted translation software, though it has been described as somewhat less fluid in the user's ear (see round-trip translation).
