Professional translators have no control over the texts they translate. In the workflow of large companies, it’s not always clear who wrote the original content, and it’s not uncommon to end up with a file that has been patched together by different teams, or even generated entirely by artificial intelligence. Translating a poorly written text is an inherent part of the job.
Even if the source document is imperfect, the expectations and goal of a translation service remain the same: to deliver a high-quality translation. So, how can we achieve this?
In this article, we will define what constitutes a “poor text,” outline the main challenges encountered, summarize the translator’s professional approach, and learn more about the limitations of AI.
What Is a “Poor Text”?
The term “poor text” refers to a text that may be problematic for one or more reasons: lack of clarity, confusing style, grammatical or typographical errors, contradictory information, inconsistent terminology, ideas lacking structure, lack of rigour, factual errors, etc.
Some elements are easier to address than others, particularly linguistic errors that do not affect the meaning; however, the task becomes more difficult when the message is unclear or poorly written from the start.
Problems Encountered
When a source text contains errors or lacks clarity, the translator must exercise caution. Some issues can be resolved easily, but others require further verification or confirmation from the client. Here are the main challenges a translator may face.
Linguistic Errors
Linguistic errors are problems that directly affect the form of the text without necessarily changing its meaning. These are probably the easiest mistakes for a linguist to spot:
- Typing error
- Missing word
- Duplicate
- Incorrect agreement
- Punctuation error
If the error is obvious and does not alter the meaning of the text, the translator can simply point it out to the client and ensure that it will not be reproduced in the target language. To learn more about the types of linguistic errors, see this explanatory article of error categories.
Lack of Clarity and Ambiguities
A lack of clarity or the presence of ambiguity means that the message is not worded precisely enough to be understood unequivocally. For example, a sentence can:
- have several possible interpretations,
- contain a pronoun whose referent is not clearly identifiable, or
- present an idea too vaguely.
For the reader, these issues can make the text difficult to understand. For the translator, this presents an additional challenge: They must make sure they understand what the author means and then convey the message clearly.
Caution is advised in cases where multiple interpretations are possible; the meaning of the message must not be altered.
Contradictions and Inconsistencies
When the same information is not presented uniformly throughout a document, this is considered an inconsistency. Here are some examples:
- Numbers that do not match from one section to another
- Different dates for the same event
- A proper noun written in different ways
- Inconsistent terminology used within the same document
The translator must therefore compare the different parts of the document and verify the information available to them before deciding whether they can correct the error or whether they need to ask the client for clarification.
A Professional Approach to a Problematic Source Text
A poor source text does not necessarily mean the translation will also be poor. Here is a four-step summary of the professional approach a translator should take to address an issue arising from the source text.
1. Assess the error
The first step is to determine the nature and extent of the problem. In particular, the translator should ask themselves a few questions:
- Is this just a typo?
- Is the intended meaning clear?
- Does the error affect the meaning or the content?
- Could the mistake have serious consequences?
Some errors can be corrected without the client’s involvement, but an error that affects the content or meaning deserves special attention.
2. Check the context
Before making a decision, the translator should check whether the rest of the content makes it possible to understand or confirm the information. They can refer to the sections later in the document, previously translated files, glossaries, references or any other reliable source.
This check sometimes makes it possible to resolve the issue without having to interrupt the translation process.
3. Report significant issues
Translators are sometimes called upon to serve as a last line of defence against errors, but they are never responsible for the original content. If the issue is likely to alter the message or have significant consequences, the translator may bring it to the client’s attention and then ask for clarification.
4. Make the corrections
Once the information has been verified by the client, the translator can make the necessary corrections during the translation process. The goal is to produce a text that reads smoothly and that accurately conveys the meaning without repeating the obvious errors in the source document. Check out our article How to Avoid English-to-French Translation Mistakes in Quebec Businesses for some tips!
These steps enable the translator to resolve any issues that arise during the translation process. Their responsibility is to produce high-quality work and to report any issues that fall outside the scope of their duties.
Translating a Poorly Written Text: The Limits of AI
Artificial intelligence and machine translation tools can speed up the translation process, but if the source document is of poor quality, the resulting translation’s quality will reflect that. AI lacks the judgment needed to assess the quality of a text or to spot the subtle errors that are obvious to the human brain. Our blog post on the blind spots of AI offers further food for thought on this topic.
A translation of a poorly written text generated by AI may therefore seem fluent at first glance, but it will inevitably reproduce the errors—and may even introduce a few more. When left entirely in the hands of AI, the translation of a poorly written text can quickly turn into incomprehensible gibberish, or even into a string of sentences with no logical connection between them. The result can sometimes even border on the ridiculous.
It is precisely in situations like this that the input of a professional remains particularly valuable: A translator analyzes, verifies, asks questions and makes decisions based on the context, which is something AI is not yet fully capable of doing. As explained in our article on post-editing, collaboration between humans and machines is the key to balancing productivity and quality.
Conclusion: Delivering a High-Quality Translation
Editing a poorly written text requires more than just a good command of languages. The translator knows how to identify issues that need correction and recognize those that require consultation with the client.
A team of qualified translators is (almost) capable of working miracles with a text of lower quality. A professional knows how to stay alert, assess the situation and ask the right questions at the right time. Through a rigorous process, relevant tools and effective communication with the client—AND in the hands of the right team—a text of average quality becomes a clear, reliable and natural translation in the target language.
The ability to combine linguistic expertise, critical thinking and professional diligence demonstrates the true value of a professional translation service.
