Newspapers, magazines and journals are, in and of themselves, very valuable resources for translators, as reading them imbues us with a current and, more often than not, correct use of language. Moreover, the most important newspapers in the world contain additional resources in their online versions that can be incredibly helpful when getting down to our work. Following we will highlight six of the most interesting such resources for translators:
The translation engine of El Pais. This machine translation tool is giving Google Translate a run for its money, what with its ability to translate words or even entire phrases from Spanish to some twenty languages, and vice versa. Like any machine translation, we have to be cautious with the output, but the fact that it is run by the principal newspaper in Spain lends it a good bit of authority in any combination involving the Spanish language.
The conjuguer of Le Figaro. This French newspaper offers a highly valuable tool for ironing out difficulties with the at times complex conjugations in said language. All you have to do is fill in the verb that you wish to conjugate and the site offers up all of its conjugations automatically.
The Clarín dictionary. This major Argentine newspaper launched a Spanish dictionary via its online version in 2011, and it includes over 40,000 words, 80,000 entries and 90,000 examples of use. It is not based on the dictionary of the Real Academia Española, but rather was created from scratch by analyzing current sources such as journals, books, the internet, etc. It is an interesting alternative to traditional dictionaries, especially when searching for definitions of Argentine colloquialisms or neologisms.
The dictionaries of the Corriere della Sera. This Italian newspaper offers not just one, but nine dictionaries. Four of these are bilingual: Italian to and from Spanish, French, German and English. The other five include an Italian dictionary, a thesaurus, one on sayings and proverbs, one on famous quotes, and another on errors. Here you will find many useful options when translating to or from the language of Dante.
The Washington Post’s Business A to Z. This newspaper based in the U.S. capital provides a helpful and comprehensive English glossary of financial terms. With over 1,250 terms, it is an essential resource when working in said field.
Fundeu BBVA. This foundation is a splinter of the Department of Urgent Spanish, part of the Spanish news agency EFE, and receives consulting from the Real Academia Española. Its purpose is to raise awareness about the correct use of the Spanish language in the media and on social networks. Its website helps to clear up doubts about day-to-day usage, and also publishes suggestions for how to spell words related to current affairs, and even has glossaries covering a variety of topics.
