| Pages in topic: [1 2] > | Do you ever write incorrectly, without taking grammar into consideration, because you feel tired? Thread poster: Josep Vives (X)
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Josep Vives (X)
Spain
Local time: 20:45
English to Spanish
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I was wondering if this question could be a poll -I had this encounter with a translator (I was looking for a collaborator for Catalan translations) and she sent me a message so full of errors, I had to decline her right away.
I still wonder how someone who claims to earn a living by offering a linguistic service can send a message full of grammar errors -it's a complete mystery to me.
When I pointed out this circumstance, she said she was tired. Does this look professi... See more I was wondering if this question could be a poll -I had this encounter with a translator (I was looking for a collaborator for Catalan translations) and she sent me a message so full of errors, I had to decline her right away.
I still wonder how someone who claims to earn a living by offering a linguistic service can send a message full of grammar errors -it's a complete mystery to me.
When I pointed out this circumstance, she said she was tired. Does this look professional to you? ▲ Collapse
| | | | | I only do it on purpose when misspelling helps make a joke | Mar 27, 2023 |
Yesterday, I learned that millennials often disregard spelling, grammar, capitalization, etc. because they want to make it seem like they're not trying. They probably thought that the number of arts available to humans is one short of adequate and decided to create an art of not trying. They'll even make effort to disfigure their texts as much as possible. That cat is something I can't explain©. In my case, feeling tired is no excuse. I sometimes notice errors I make in my forum posts (which sh... See more Yesterday, I learned that millennials often disregard spelling, grammar, capitalization, etc. because they want to make it seem like they're not trying. They probably thought that the number of arts available to humans is one short of adequate and decided to create an art of not trying. They'll even make effort to disfigure their texts as much as possible. That cat is something I can't explain©. In my case, feeling tired is no excuse. I sometimes notice errors I make in my forum posts (which shows that I don't put enough care into what I write), but I almost never correct them because I have the preasure and the plivilege© of not being a native speaker of English ▲ Collapse
| | | | MollyRose 
United States
Local time: 13:45
English to Spanish
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I had proper grammar so ingrained in me during "grammar school" that I wouldn't let that pass if I noticed I had made a mistake. To begin with, I usually don't make grammar mistakes. I guess I did just then, in the second sentence, so I rearranged the order so it would not end with a preposition!
| | | | Hayley Wakenshaw
United Kingdom
Local time: 19:45
Member (2018)
Dutch to English
| Nope, and there's not much excuse for writing incorrectly either. | Mar 27, 2023 |
Obviously, if you're writing in a language that isn't your native tongue, you can't be judged too harshly for the odd mistake. But I would not want to hire anyone who claims to work with words professionally if they couldn't even make sure that a quick email was written properly.
Grammarly has plug-ins and extensions. If you aren't able to use one of those, it only takes seconds to cut and paste the text in an email into a spelling and grammar checker to make sure you aren't making ... See more Obviously, if you're writing in a language that isn't your native tongue, you can't be judged too harshly for the odd mistake. But I would not want to hire anyone who claims to work with words professionally if they couldn't even make sure that a quick email was written properly.
Grammarly has plug-ins and extensions. If you aren't able to use one of those, it only takes seconds to cut and paste the text in an email into a spelling and grammar checker to make sure you aren't making mistakes. There are plenty of free ones available.
I'm not that picky about some of the more old-fashioned grammar rules like splitting infinitives, ending a sentence on a preposition, or even using 'who' instead of 'whom'. I wouldn't even be bothered if they couldn't use commas correctly because there are so many rules to remember about them. (I remember reading a book devoted entirely to these rules, but I can't find it now, sadly.) However, I would want to see proper, grammatical sentences with capital letters and basic punctuation. That's the very, very least you should expect from someone who claims to write for a living.
[Edited at 2023-03-27 14:49 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 19:45
Member (2008)
Italian to English
Q. Do you ever write incorrectly, without taking grammar into consideration, because you feel tired?
A. No. Not for any reason.
| | | | Joseph Tein
United States
Local time: 11:45
Member (2009)
Spanish to English
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| No excuse for incorrect, sloppy writing | Mar 27, 2023 |
There is no excuse for a reply full of mistakes. (A typo or two is something different.) Especially someone working in the language field should not be sending a message full of mistakes. I once chided a program manager at a translation agency for sending me a message that contained four errors, told her I did not want to work with her when she was so careless about her use of language. "Tired" is not a valid explanation or excuse, because correct writing should be something so ingrained in a ... See more There is no excuse for a reply full of mistakes. (A typo or two is something different.) Especially someone working in the language field should not be sending a message full of mistakes. I once chided a program manager at a translation agency for sending me a message that contained four errors, told her I did not want to work with her when she was so careless about her use of language. "Tired" is not a valid explanation or excuse, because correct writing should be something so ingrained in a professional's mind that it comes out without even thinking about it.
Since somebody mentioned this: I also DO care about people using "who" and "whom" correctly; it only takes a few more brain cells to understand the difference and use them appropriately!
As long as we're at it, I think educated professional writers need to know the difference between "criterion" and "criteria," "bacterium" and "bacteria," "phenomena" and "phenomenon" ... I could go on. I read and hear these mistakes all the time. ▲ Collapse
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Ever since I started translating, I became aware of how many stupid and careless mistakes we continually make and that these should definitely not be made by translators. Apart from that, removing and rectifying them is really time-consuming, so I've trained myself to avoid them and I hardly ever make any fortunately. I make sure I press the right key too. I dislike sloppy work and mistakes make your work look sloppy even though the translation flows well and there are no incorrect terms.
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I don’t bother when typing messages on phone like now
But I make more effort for work obvs
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Stepan Konev
Russian Federation
Local time: 22:45
English to Russian
Notably when I want to get a job. I would read it 3 to 5 times before I send it. And notably when I have to reply in English which is not my native language. If I make mistakes, it means that I do not know how to say that correctly, but it does not mean that I am tired or feel free to make mistakes because it is just an informal convo anyway.
| | | | Jan Truper
Germany
Local time: 20:45
English to German
But I do sometimes write incorrectly when the job requires it (for example, when I am translating a game and a character does not speak proper English).
That's hard work, and it makes me tired. 
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If I had one euro for each time I receive a CV full of spelling mistakes and grammatical errors I’d be a very rich lady…
| | | | Baran Keki
Türkiye
Local time: 22:45
Member
English to Turkish
If her native language is Catalan and reply is full grammatical mistakes, then she is most likely a crap translator. Tiredness is another red flag. Cheap translators churn out large volumes to make up for a decent rate and naturally they make a lot of translation (and grammar) mistakes. I've reviewed/proofread enough of their rubbish to know that.
If she's made grammar mistakes in her second language, then this could be excused. It's a real pain in the arse to have to communicate in Englis... See more If her native language is Catalan and reply is full grammatical mistakes, then she is most likely a crap translator. Tiredness is another red flag. Cheap translators churn out large volumes to make up for a decent rate and naturally they make a lot of translation (and grammar) mistakes. I've reviewed/proofread enough of their rubbish to know that.
If she's made grammar mistakes in her second language, then this could be excused. It's a real pain in the arse to have to communicate in English with the clients (I don't work with Turkish clients due to financial reasons), I seem to throw grammatical niceties to the wind in urgent matters or when I'm pestered/frustrated with constant email exchanges over insignificant details... As atrocious and halting as my English might be, I sometimes wish I could just talk to them on the phone and get things over with quickly. ▲ Collapse
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Baran Keki wrote:
As atrocious and halting as my English might be
Worry no longer, I found this for you on the web:
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[Edited at 2023-03-28 10:29 GMT]
| | | | | More than tired | Mar 28, 2023 |
I’ve just received another CV and this “translator” must be exceedingly tired as he seems unsure about his language pairs: in the subject line he says “Freelance Translator Collaboration Proposal [English to Danish]” and in the text “Languages: Norwegian English”
| | | | Eva Stoppa
Germany
Local time: 20:45
English to German
+ ...
| Not in a formal context | Mar 28, 2023 |
When I write in a Chat which is more or less informal, then a few mistakes don't break my self-esteem, but answering to a Job offer, for me, is a formal context. I am selling -- or at least -- trying to sell, my capabilities of handling a language, so I will do my best to write as correctly as I can. Although nobody is perfect and there still can be some mistakes. But excuaing it with me being tired, no!!!
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