Still don’t know what to say when asked if you speak Spanish?
Don’t know how to ask for help?
Find out how to say I’m trying to learn Spanish translation!
About learning Spanish translation
English and Spanish are similar but not identical languages. You should know a list of frequently used words if you want to have a basic conversation. But there is something important you should know about learning Spanish translation.
Spanish may seem a bit more complex than English on a grammatical level. Yes, Spanish grammar rules are varied, and memorizing them to master them takes effort.
That’s why learning Spanish translation is not as simple as translating word for word. You have to give it meaning, aesthetics, and beauty.
Let’s take a sentence as an example
- English
I love your humor sense
- Literal Spanish
Yo amo tu humor sentido
This would be the literal translation; in Spanish, it doesn’t make much sense. It indicates that your humor comes from feelings. When I want to say I love your way of expressing humor. Then I should translate the sentence this way.
- English
I love your humor sense
- Meaningful Spanish
Amo tu sentido del humor
Even if we use the title of this article as an example, we will see that there are differences in the translation. That is, we cannot make a literal translation because it will be meaningless in Spanish.
- English
I’m trying to learn Spanish translation.
- Literal Spanish
Yo estoy tratando de aprender española traducción.
- Meaningful Spanish
Estoy tratando de aprender traducción española.
I don’t know if you can appreciate the grammatical structure where Spanish and English reverse the last words. This inversion game is very frequent in translations between these languages.
If we do it the other way around, translating from Spanish to English, you will see how it works.
- Spanish
Estoy considerando la repartición de bienes.
- Incorrect English
I am considering the division of assets.
- Correct English
I am considering asset sharing.
The secret of a successful Spanish translation
All of us trainees stop at the stage of literal translations and amuse ourselves with their lack of meaning. And in reality, the secret of a successful Spanish translation is to forget English.
You tell me, how can I forget English being my native language? I mean forget English in the first place and learn to think in Spanish.
However, I want to share with you a couple of tricks to achieve a perfect translation. One of those that everyone will applaud for the beauty and cadence of its structure.
- Make sure that the final result conveys the real meaning of the source text.
- Maintain the right tone and style.
- research the language.
- Know the target audience.
- Remember that there are several dialects of Spanish.
- Define the regional settings.
How to make a Spanish translation
In the previous section, we briefly discussed the tricks to achieve a successful Spanish translation. In this part, I’m trying to go a little deeper into how to make a Spanish translation. Pay attention to these points and improve the quality of your translations starting today.
1. Researching
Researching before doing a translation is as important as researching before buying a car. We don’t want to make the mistake of buying a damaged car.
If we don’t know it, we try to soak up all the important information related to the car. Such as manufacturer brand, spare parts, tricks, and more.
The same goes for the content we need to translate. And here are some topics you should not miss to research.
- Requirements
- Objectives
- Topic
- Target languages
- Regional settings
- Document type
- Location
- Audience
- Social, cultural, and political environments
2. Audience
Through prior research, we gain an understanding of our audience. This audience can be Spanish from Spain, Latin America, or any Spanish-speaking country/region.
It may even be the case that they do not belong to a Hispanic region. It could very well be a speaker of Spanish as a foreign language.
Starting from this point, we will define how we are going to speak to that target audience. For example, knowing the differences between tú (you), usted (you), vos (you). These are the three ways of referring to each other in the second person.
Here is a small example
- Spain: Tú
- Colombia: Usted
- Argentina: Vos
3. Tone
The part I mentioned before regarding tú, usted, and vos is also known as translation tone. This tone tells us when we use formal, informal, or neutral expressions.
It´s very important to take care of the tone, since this way your audience will be more connected with the translated content. Let me give you the example of movies dubbed in Spanish and Latin Spanish.
- English: You’ll be a great artist.
- Spain: Tú serás un gran artista.
- Colombia: Usted será un gran artista.
- Argentina: Vos serás un gran artista.
If you were to use you to a Colombian audience, it would come across as misplaced overconfidence. If you were to say you at Spain, they would take it as an excess of formality and put-up barriers. If you say tú or usted in Argentina, both would be out of place.
4. Style
The style of a Spanish translation refers to the way ideas are expressed. They can be loaded with formality, humor, and even drama. It all depends on the target audience.
As long as you understand what type of text you are translating, you will be able to maintain the style of the original content. That is, convey the original style appropriately to the target audience.
5. Idioms
Idioms are conversational expressions that occur in certain regions. They are used so frequently that they end up sounding like general language phrases. It is therefore recommended to avoid their use unless permitted or requested.
The best way to say I’m trying to learn Spanish Translation
When you want to express your desire to learn, just say it. This is the best way to say I am trying to learn Spanish translation you will succeed. You will notice how native Spanish speakers will give you their unconditional support.
Through a translation with an almost literal meaning, we can express ourselves very well. As I explained at the beginning, this sentence has a non-literal translation from English to Spanish. It is up to the translator to use the right structure.
Estoy tratando de aprender traducción española.
I am trying to learn Spanish translation.
As a general rule, the word Spanish/Spanish in the Spanish language is not capitalized, whereas in English they do. Don’t forget that the words Spanish translation swap places with each other when translating them. This is what gives the sentence an almost literal but meaningful translation.
I don’t know how but I’m trying
I once tried to speak with a native speaker I had met through social media. In the middle of the conversation, I felt uncomfortable because the person was talking non-stop.
I understood what he was saying, nodded, and sometimes responded. However, the conversation flowed beautifully.
My sister asked me how I was able to talk about the universe and deep subjects with this friend. I just told her I don’t know how but I’m trying.
Life presents us with difficulties along the way to test our tenacity. Not knowing something doesn’t mean you can’t do it or will fail.
These challenges come to us as a stepping stone to level up. Some accept it and go up, just as there are those who get scared and give up.
Which one are you? Accept the challenge of learning Spanish translation and try until you succeed!