On Constructing a Transfer Dictionary for Man and Machine

John Laffling
Savonlinna School of Translation Studies

Abstract

This article argues that, unlike conventional bilingual knowledge sources that are underpinned by the principle of filtering out a limited number of representative equivalents, transfer dictionaries that are derived from computer-assisted parallel text analysis can bring both the human and the mechanized translator a stage nearer the elusive ideal of text-insertable translation equivalents.

Table of contents

In this article I wish to propose a new type of MT (machine translation)- oriented transfer dictionary: one composed of literal examples of linguistic patterns documented in functionally equivalent portions of textual discourse. In so doing, I will illustrate the ways in which such a dictionary would be a useful addition to the stock of knowledge sources available to the human translator.

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