Introducción a la Traducción Inglés-Español - Curso gratis de enplenitud.com

S. Gomes is a bilingual translator and interpreter with over six year´s experience teaching business language and culture.

Every translator´s nightmare is to proofread their work. You send a translation to a client and you realize later that it had a mistake or a typo. Or worse, the client send it back to you marked with so many corrections that it looks like they bled on your work. Poor punctuation or misspelled words are practically unforgivable.

Every document you translate is a reflection on you and your skills. Some people devote only a few minutes to proofreading, hoping to catch any glaring errors that jump out from the page, but a quick job, especially after you´ve been working long and hard on a translation, usually misses a lot.

Here are a few tips to make your translation as close to perfect as possible:

take a break between writing and proofreading. Set the document aside for at least 20 minutes or longer whenever possible. Go for a run. Get a bite to eat. Watch a movie. Approach your writing with a clear head so you can look at the translation fresh.
Proper lighting is essential. Don´t use fluorescent lighting when proofreading.
Use spell-check wisely. Word-processing programs have spell-checkers that will cat most but not ALL spelling errors. They might suggest a word that isn´t what you want at all. Make sure that your text says that “She´s anxious to meet him.” And not “meat him”. Don´t rely entirely on them.
Print out your work. You´re more likely to catch typos and mistakes looking at a hard copy. The eye tends to scan information on a screen, but actually reads it when it´s on a printed page.
Break down your tasks. The number of things you need to look out for may overwhelm you. For example, one proof for spelling, one for type of font and size, etc.
Read the text out loud and slowly, articulating each word as it is actually written. When you read silently or too quickly you may skip over errors or make unconscious corrections.
Proof tables and lists separately. Proof the most prominent text separately such as headings, table of contents, titles, etc. When proofing a numbered or lettered list, take a moment at the beginning and run down the list counting each number out making sure that the numbers or letters flow in their proper order. Make sure all headings are formatted identically and numbered properly.
Keep a “glossary”. Write out proper names and specific terminology on a separaThe proofreading process becomes more efficient as you develop and practice a systematic strategy. You´ll learn to identify the specific areas of your own writing that need careful attention and try to have a method for finding errors will help you focus more on translating your text.te sheet of paper and check it against every instance in the main document to ensure they are spelled correctly each time.
Check spacing, bullets, and tabs. Make sure the tabs line up especially from page to page.
Use specific notations. When marking the document, try using proofreader marks. Use a colored ink that will “pop out” at you as you look at the page.
Know your weak areas. Create a list of the errors you make repeatedly so that you can pay more attention to them next time you translate something.