Words about words matter too

The Problem

When a string needs to be translated for localization, a translator will often be presented with nothing more than the string itself. No context, no explanation. The linguist can’t see the string in the UI, might not know what certain words are referencing, or might not even be familiar with some phrases or terms. This is where message descriptions come in. A message description is a description of the string that contains all of the context a linguist would need to provide a quality translation. Good message descriptions lead to good translations. I specialized in writing message descriptions for Google strings.

Constraints

To write effective message descriptions, I had to be able to identify the nuances of language and recognize when they could cause problems in translations. Picking apart a string – even a single-word string – with this kind of precision requires careful attention to detail, knowledge of linguistics, and empathy for the user as well as the translator.

Every message description should include:

• Parts of speech – for example, what adjectives are modifying which nouns

• Definitions

• UI element and location

• Point in user journey - where the user came from to get here and where we want them to go from here

• Related strings in the UI (for example, if this is a button, state what the header above it says along with the button beside it)

• Space limitations

• The tone of voice

• The name of the government regulation if the string is required for specific compliance

Some red flags that require attention include:

• Ambiguity – squash it

• Jargon – don’t assume a translator will understand it

• Colloqiaulisms – if they need to be there, they need to be explained

• Gerunds – nouns formed from verbs with an -ing ending are commonly difficult to translate

• Standalone adjectives - specify what noun it refers to so that translators in gendered languages can ensure gendered agreement

Area

Google localization

Users

Translators

Examples

I worked on rewriting message descriptions for strings found to commonly have translation errors. The following are some findings that I pulled from that project that show how crucial a good message description is to a quality translation.

One of these strings was “Elopement photographer,” found on a clickable chip when a user is searching for specific services. Without context about what we use “elopement” to refer to, it could be translated as varying things. In Italian, it’s “fuga d'amore,” or “love escape.” In German, “elopement” translates as “Entführung,” or “kidnapping.” So, the clear definition in the following message description is crucial to the accurate translation of “Elopement photographer”:

Some strings won’t work as word-for-word translations because they include proper nouns or noun phrases that may not have the same meaning when broken down by word. An example of a string that includes a potentially confusing proper noun is “Mesa Branca spiritual center,” another example of a service type. Translating “white table spiritual center” wouldn’t make any sense. My message description for this included: 

“Compact stones” is a good example of a string with a noun phrase that can easily be mistranslated without a clear definition. Just translating “compact” separately from “stone” for the noun phrase could result in “small” or “dense,” and the translator needs information about what “compact stones” are. I included this in the message description to clarify:

Sometimes, poor message descriptions contain a lot of information, but the organization of the information is potentially confusing. A well-structured message description isn’t necessarily more informative, but is easier to understand and therefore more likely to be useful.

Decision-making

The goal of writing message descriptions is to make it possible for Google users who speak any of hundreds of different languages around the world to have an experience that’s just as good as the one had by those who speak the language the original string was written in. Not to mention, errors can be downright embarrassing. In deciding what to include in message descriptions, many parts seem too obvious at first, but the complexity of language shouldn’t be underestimated.

Metrics

Studies have shown that comprehensive and clear message descriptions drastically reduce context- and source-driven errors in translation.