Online machine translators translate word for word most of the time. And if you’ve ever taken a language course, you know that sentence structure differs from language to language, so word-for-word translations are rarely correct. Although they may be able to translate “manzana verde” to “green apple” correctly, they fall short if the translations get a little more complicated. Take a look at this translation from Spanish to English of a segment of a children’s story:

Originally written in Spanish:

Once upon a time there was a little girl named Natalie. She was only three years old, and everyone who saw her fell in love with her. One day, her loving mother took her shopping for new pajamas. However, while they were in the store, Natalie saw her true love, a doll! She did not let her mother buy her new pajamas, saying that she already had one of hers at her grandmother’s house.

Automatic translation into English:

Once upon a time there was a very little girl named Natalia. Only he was three years old, and everyone saw that he fell in love with her. One day, her mother lovingly took her shopping for new pajamas. However, while they were in the store, Natalie saw her true love, a doll! She did not let her mother buy her new pajamas, saying that she already had them at her grandmother’s house.

Human translation into English:

Once upon a time there was a girl named Natalia. She was barely three years old and everyone who saw her fell in love with her. One day, her beloved mother took her shopping for a new pair of pajamas. However, while she was in the store, Natalie saw her true love, a baby doll! She refused to let her mother buy her new pajamas, stating that she already had pajamas at Mimi’s.

So you can see in the translation of this short children’s story that the automatic translator bombarded its task as a good translator. I might add that I used one of the best known and most widely used online machine translators. I won’t say which one because I don’t want to break anyone’s business, but this one is on the first page of Google when looking for an online translator. So, in other words, it’s really “reliable”.

You may be thinking that automatic translators work better from English to another language and not the other way around. Let’s look at an example of a business email originally written in English and translated into Spanish using a popular online machine translator.

Originally written in English:

Dear Mr. White,
I am sending you an email regarding your daughter’s grade in her Spanish class. She has always gotten poor grades on all of her homework and tests. I recommend that she stay after school for at least an hour, three days a week to meet with a Spanish tutor. I feel this is necessary for her to have a chance to pass this course.

Best regards,
family barns
Assistant Principal at Jordan High

Automatic translation into Spanish:

Dear Mr. White,
I am emailing you reference to your daughter’s grade in her Spanish class. She has consistently scored a low point in all of her tests and preparation. Recommending that she stay after school for at least an hour three days a week to meet with a Spanish tutor. I feel that this is necessary for her to have a chance in passing this course.

regards,
Amilia’s Barns
Assistant Principal of Jordan High School

Human translation into Spanish:

Dear Mr. White,
The e-mail regarding your daughter’s grade in her Spanish class. She has consistently gotten low points on all assignments and tests. I recommend that she stay after school for at least an hour, three days a week to meet with a Spanish tutor. I think it is necessary for her to have a chance to pass this course.

To be honest,
family barn
Jordan High School Assistant Principal

If you’re using an automatic translator for school or business, you really should reconsider. Using an automatic translator can negatively affect your rating and income! If you’re trying to communicate with foreign customers using an automatic translator, maybe now you know why they didn’t respond or were just as confused as ever!