trans ‧ late S3 /trænsˈleɪt, trænz-/ BrE AmE verb [intransitive and transitive]
[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: Latin ; Origin: past participle of transferre ; ⇨ ↑ transfer 1 ]
1 . CHANGE LANGUAGES to change written or spoken words into another language ⇨ interpret
translate something (from something) into something
Translate the text from Italian into English.
Poetry doesn’t usually translate well.
translate as
Dagda, an ancient Irish deity, literally translates as ‘the good god’.
2 . HAPPEN AS RESULT if one thing translates into another, the second thing happens as a result of the first
translate (something) into something
A small increase in local spending will translate into a big rise in property tax.
3 . HAVE SAME MEANING to mean the same as something else
translate into/to something
These rates translate into a return of 8.5% for dollar investors.
4 . CHANGE FORMS to change something, or be changed, from one form into another
translate (something) into something
the danger of translating your emotions into actions
Jokes often don’t translate well into print.
5 . USE IN NEW SITUATION to be used in a new situation, or to make something do this SYN adapt
translate something to something
It’s amazing how well the play has been translated to film.
—translatable adjective
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THESAURUS
▪ translate verb [intransitive and transitive] to change written or spoken words into another language:
She has translated a number of his books.
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Michael Meyer translated the play from the original Norwegian.
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Can you translate this into French?
▪ interpret verb [intransitive and transitive] to change what someone is saying into another language, as they are speaking:
No one in our tour group spoke Spanish so we had to ask the guide to interpret.
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We'll have to find someone who speaks Chinese to interpret the questions and answers for our guests.
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I had to interpret for my boss on the last trip to Japan.
▪ put something into English/French/Japanese etc British English to translate something into another language, especially a few words or a short piece of writing:
I've written a message for Fabio. Could you put it into Italian for me?
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I had to put a list of Japanese words into English.