Abstract
Dictionaries of all types are an indispensable tool for both professional and trainee translators. However, the literature on trainee translators indicates that the skills associated with dictionary use have not been given the required attention. Knowing which dictionaries to use and how to use them efficiently when engaged in the translation process are significant aspects of translation pedagogy. In fact, facilitating the development of effective dictionary use helps develop translation competence in general. Therefore, the present article reports on a qualitative case study of successful translation students’ usage of and preferences for various types of dictionaries. The results show that successful trainee translators use dictionaries to locate synonyms or better translations for target words. Successful translation students are also reported to use dictionaries frequently to check spelling. Most respondents reported consulting the dictionary after they finished reading source texts. In line with the global move toward digitalization, the participants reported using electronic dictionaries with significantly greater frequency than paper dictionaries. In most cases, successful translation students’ use of paper dictionaries was limited to classroom examinations. The open-ended interview questions also helped to reveal the variety of dictionaries used by this group of trainee translators. Taken together, these findings have utility for translation instructors, particularly regarding the improvement of trainee translators’ experiences and the provision of assistance to less successful students.
Highlights
The success of translation depends on a solid foundation in the basics (Fujii, 2007)
The literature on trainee translators indicates that the skills associated with dictionary use have not been given the required attention
Knowing which dictionaries to use and how to use them efficiently when engaged in the translation process are significant aspects of translation pedagogy
Summary
The success of translation depends on a solid foundation in the basics (Fujii, 2007). One problem identified in the literature on trainee translators is that the skills associated with dictionary use have not been given enough attention (Kodura, 2016; Law, 2009). Research carried out on dictionary use indicates that not all dictionary users have appropriate skills, which is especially true regarding electronic dictionaries (Mavrommatidou, 2018). Recent efforts have been made to improve dictionaries, but little has been done to discover how to equip dictionary users with better skills when interacting with dictionaries (Lew, 2013a). There is a paucity of literature on dictionary users’ behaviors and preferences, with the only studies in this area having been conducted to investigate language learners and not translators (Lew & De Schryver, 2014)
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