The Translator Game!! |
Some kids know about online translation sites and think that they can use them to
write perfect French. Unfortunately these translations are all done by computer
and computers are not very smart.... It's like trying to translate something
using a dictionary. Here's an example: I typed a simple sentence into www.freetranslation.com "Oh Grandma, what great big teeth you have!" and then hit the 'translate button. It gave me the result: "Oh la grandmère, quels grands grands dents que vous avez-il! " ... if your French isn't that good that might look like a pretty reasonable answer, BUT... here's where it can be funny; try copying the French answer and then go back to the translator option page. Next, paste the French into the box and switch the options from 'English to French' to 'French to English'. ... When I did it and had the site translate the French back into English, this is the result I was given: "Oh the grandmère, which big big teeth that you do it have!" Try making up some simple sentences in French and put the computer to the test. The results can be a bit of a giggle and can show you that you're smarter than the computer! (Make sure you hit the button marked "Free Translation", if you hit the button marked "Human Translation" you'll be asked to pay.) |