Translation - art & business » Literature / Poetry »
Why it will be a long time before computers replace human translators (words w/ two meanings)
Thread poster: Dave Greatrix
Dave Greatrix
Dave Greatrix  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 18:13
Dutch to English
+ ...
Jul 16, 2002

1) The bandage was wound around the wound.



2) The farm was used to produce produce.



3) The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse.



4) We must polish the Polish furniture.



5) He could lead if he would get the lead out.



6) The soldier decided to desert his dessert in the desert.



7) Since there is no time like the present, he thought it was time to present the pr... See more
1) The bandage was wound around the wound.



2) The farm was used to produce produce.



3) The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse.



4) We must polish the Polish furniture.



5) He could lead if he would get the lead out.



6) The soldier decided to desert his dessert in the desert.



7) Since there is no time like the present, he thought it was time to present the present.



A bass was painted on the head of the bass drum.



9) When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes.



10) I did not object to the object.



If you don\'t understand any of the above, they are all words with multiple meanings Ex. a bass is a fish and also a description of a voice or instrument with low notes. ▲ Collapse
 
Martin Schmurr
Martin Schmurr  Identity Verified
Local time: 19:13
Italian to German
This problem has long been resolved! Jul 16, 2002

e. g. in the automatic translation system I am programming, different meanings can be distinguished correctly in most cases according to the context, e. g. preceding article or verb. It\'s more difficult if the word is at the beginning of the sentence, or in shortened or complex sentences.
 
Alexandru Pojoga
Alexandru Pojoga
Romania
Local time: 20:13
Japanese to English
+ ...
Martin any more info on your program? Jul 16, 2002

Would love to hear more! Any language pair or targeted at just one pair? Adaptive, learning? Principles of operation?



Any good translation samples yet -- ones that show it working around common pitfalls?



Anything not covered in secrecy of course



Best of luck and let us know when it\'s finished!
 
Martin Schmurr
Martin Schmurr  Identity Verified
Local time: 19:13
Italian to German
here you are! Jul 17, 2002

Dear Alexandru,

we have all language combinations between E,F,S,G, and Italian, plus S-Portuguese-S. The program is adaptive and learning. As for translation samples, I\'ve only collected the bad ones so far (and will publish them in the near future).

\"let us know when it\'s finished\" - NEVER, of course! At the beginning, my boss thought a couple of months would be enough - now we\'ve been working on it for 13 years…
 
Monika Martens
Monika Martens
Local time: 19:13
Italian to Albanian
+ ...
In memoriam
interesting examples :) Aug 17, 2002

loved reading the examples given, the one about the dove had my special attention

Interesting word combinations

Greetings Monika
[addsig]
 


To report site rules violations or get help, contact a site moderator:

Moderator(s) of this forum
NancyLynn[Call to this topic]
Maria Castro[Call to this topic]
Fernanda Rocha[Call to this topic]

You can also contact site staff by submitting a support request »

Why it will be a long time before computers replace human translators (words w/ two meanings)







Wordfast Pro
Translation Memory Software for Any Platform

Exclusive discount for ProZ.com users! Save over 13% when purchasing Wordfast Pro through ProZ.com. Wordfast is the world's #1 provider of platform-independent Translation Memory software. Consistently ranked the most user-friendly and highest value

Buy now! »
Protemos translation business management system
Create your account in minutes, and start working! 3-month trial for agencies, and free for freelancers!

The system lets you keep client/vendor database, with contacts and rates, manage projects and assign jobs to vendors, issue invoices, track payments, store and manage project files, generate business reports on turnover profit per client/manager etc.

More info »