IMHO, the hardest word to translate in the Bible is 感動 {gan3-dong4}. It makes perfect sense in Chinese but has no perfect equivalent in English, or even Hebrew or Greek. It means something in one context and something else in another. Sometimes it’s not even there in the text. Incidentally, it’s one of the favorite words…
Category: Strategy
Tools of Trade
Right tool for the right job. It’s no different when it comes to interpretation and translation (more on their difference here). Here are a few tools that I’ve found to be tremendously helpful over the years. All of them are free to use, so, go nuts! Quick Draw Ironically, interpretation is where we need the most…
Stage Manner Q&A
When it comes to interpretation on stage, some interesting questions come up that we normally don’t think of: Q: Where do I put my hands?A: For the hand that is not holding the mic, you are encouraged to gesture with it. Otherwise, leave it hanging by the side; it’s not that weird. Q: Whom do I…
Yeah, We Don’t Interpret That
It’s nothing personal, but there are certain things we just don’t interpret. It’s not that we can’t. Rather, interpreting them interrupts the audience’s understanding at the cost of interpreters’ mental resources. It’s just not worth it. As a familiar example, many people use filler words in their speech. We faithfully interpret some of them including “basically”, “sort…
The Un-mic-able
Just the other day, I watched an episode of Seinfeld where Jerry said, “According to most studies, people’s number one fear is public speaking. Number two is death. Death is number two. Does that sound right? This means to the average person, if you go to a funeral, you’re better off in the casket than doing…
How to Hit a Curveball
When we think we know all there is to know about interpretation, nothing humbles us more than an unintentional curveball thrown by the speaker. Then and there, it could feel like a “deer in the stage light” situation. But the reality is, we are not on trial, this is not a recital, and there are far fewer people…
Mixing Things Up
Let’s say, you hear two languages mixed in one sentence, like “我們今天來探討一下關於Interpretation的話題”. What do you do? I used to be impressed with other interpreters who instantly flipped English to Mandarin and vice versa. But it later hit me, what did the audience end up hearing? English speakers would most likely scratch their heads at “Today…
Less Is More
As I have previously mentioned, simple organization of speech can potentially save us a great deal of time and effort. If you have just started the journey of interpretation, you are well-advised to employ a fewer number of words in order to convey your idea to the audience. Should you achieve a higher level of…
Knock, Knock!
Nothing makes us more nervous than jokes. It takes nothing short of all our tact, wit, and mental capacity, plus a dash of divine intervention to do them right. Maybe that’s why the official policy of interpreters on Earth is: WE DO NOT INTERPRET JOKES However, we sometimes don’t have the choice to stand like…
Curiosity Killed the Cat,
but it works great for people, especially interpreters. And don’t worry, I heard that satisfaction brought that cat back. Over 90% of our interpretation relies on the same common language that gets us through our days, which is why if you put a gun to someone’s head and ask them to interpret, they can get…