Interpreter vs Translator

Within the field of language and linguistics, you’ll find a variety of jobs. But two words you’ll hear or read a lot are those of INTERPRETER and TRANSLATOR. Those two words are often used as synonyms of each other although they aren’t. Translators do different work than interpreters.

This post will focus on those two professions and explain their differences. However, one should note that many people within the linguistic field work as both, translators and interpreters. But that doesn't mean these two jobs are the same.

In both professions, words from one language are put into the other. The difference is found in what is taken and how it is put into the other language.

An INTERPRETER translates spoken words orally. They talk while working, as do other parties for whom they interpret.

A TRANSLATOR translates written words in writing. They type loads while working and translate documents that they’ve been given.

Generally, interpreters have to think quicker than translators, while the latter are expected to be more precise than the former. An interpreter may translate the word “chuckle” as “laugh” because they have to move quickly and the message isn’t changed. A translator is expected to translate “chuckle” as “chuckle”. Furthermore, translators can work on big projects on their own, while interpreters generally work in teams as soon as a job exceeds 45 minutes to ensure concentration and accuracy.

There are further specialisations in both professions: sworn-in or not sworn-in, legal, medical, social, cultural/literary, technical,…

Interpreters can also differentiate two forms of interpreting – simultaneous and consecutively – and three media of interpreting: on location/in person, via the telephone or via a video call.

Some of these specialisation and differentiations will be talked about on this blog in future posts.

However, the biggest difference between INTERPRETER and TRANSLATOR is that they translate the spoken word as opposed to the written one.