Word senses vis-a-vis Figures of Speech and how they ought to be accurately translated

As a good translator, it is absolutely paramount to know word senses and figures of speech and the role they play in language so as to provide an idiomatic translation, also known as meaning- based- translation (Mildred L. Larson, 1998). In addition to primary and secondary senses of language, words may also have figurative senses. Figurative senses are based on associative relations with the primary sense. Some of the types of figures of speech will be elucidated below;

1. This is the use of words in figurative sense involving association. A good example is in “The Kettle is boiling”. Here, the noun Kettle is being used in a figurative sense to mean “water”. As a good translator, you do not have to translate the figurative senses with a literal form of the word as this would lead to an incorrect translation because the figurative expression may not be directly transferred into the target language as this would mean a different thing altogether. The correct translation would be “the water in the Kettle is boiling “ or simply “the water is boiling”.

Some figurative senses are based on a logical contiguity rather than the spatial or temporal. For instance one may say” Moses is read every day in the Jewish Synagogues” not “read Moses”. Here, Moses is used in a figurative manner to stand for what Moses wrote- the law. There is a clear logical connection or relationship since Moses is the writer of the law that is read in the Jewish Synagogues.  A good translator could translate this as “The laws written by Moses are read at the Synagogues everyday”

It’s important to note that an attribute may be used for the object which has the attribute. For instance in the phrase “Don’t substitute the good for the best”, good means good work and best means best work. As such, this means do not substitute the good work for the best work. Alternatively, an object may be used for the attribute it symbolizes such as “The arm of the law reached out to all corners of the country, where the arm symbolizes authority. In this case, a literal translation of “arm” would give a wrong meaning in some languages.

2. These are figurative senses based on part-whole relationship. This figurative sense is common in greek languages as seen in the new testament translation of the Lord’s prayer. In the Lord’s Prayer it says “Give us this day our daily bread”. One specific member “bread” of the class food is substituted for food.

Metonymy and Synecdoche can therefore be accurately translated in three major ways;

First, the sense of the word may be translated non-figuratively i.e. the intended meaning may be made plain so that there is no longer a figurative sense in the receptor language translation. The Kettle is boiling may therefore be translated as “Water is boiling”

Secondly, the word may be retained in the original language but sense is added to the word. This should be used more so when there is an emotional component as it is the case in poetry. For instance “Moses is read in the Synagogues might be translated as “The law written by Moses is read in the Synagogue”

Thirdly, the figurative expression of the receptor language can be substituted for the figurative expression of the source language. For instance the word “mouth” may be substituted for “speech”

3. Use of Idioms. Idioms are expressions of at least two words which cannot be understood literary and function as a unit semantically. Examples include; “You are fighting a losing battle, “I don’t have my eye on you”, etc. Literal translation of idioms in the receptor/target language can be nonsensical. As such, idioms in the receptor language ought to be used naturally to make the translation lively and maintain the style of the source language.

Also important to note is that some words in the source language may not be idioms but can best be translated using idioms in the target language. A good and common example is when the word “peace” is often translated with idiom “to sit down in the heart of Africa”.

4. Use of Euphemisms. Euphemism is a figurative expression which is in some ways like a metonymy. Here, there is substitution of one word for another. The purpose of the usage is to avoid an offensive expression or expression that is unpleasant. It is usually used in areas of sex, death and supernatural. The Iteso people of Eastern Uganda for instance use the word “ ne ikiliok” to substitute “edino” which means “penis” because the usage of the word “edino” is seen as obscene and “edino” is sacred since it is used for reproduction and therefore unpleasant to use. In English on the other hand, “pass way” is used as a substitute for “dyeing”.

Euphemisms will always need to be translated by a comparable Euphemism in the receptor language in order to have a meaningful translation.

5. Use of Hyperbole. This is the use of exaggeration deliberately for effect, and is not to be understood as if it were a literal description. For instance the use of “I am starving” to mean “I am hungry”, etc. If translated literary, hyperboles may be understood as untruths in the source language since the meaning may be absolutely different.

It is therefore important for every professional translator to have an adequate understanding of how the figurative language ought to be translated from one source language to another target or receptor language. A translator who is truly bilingual should be able to understand the corresponding figurative language in both the source and target languages in order to be able to provide meaningful and natural translation

 

About the Author

The Author is an Ateso Translator and Project Manager at Igloos Consultancy Services Ltd, a Uganda based Translations agency. The company provides professional translation services for African languages as well as other International languages.