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1. Dictionaries and Translation
Bilingual dictionaries are wonderful tools. When you don't know what a word means in another language, you can look it up in a dictionary. If it is not in that particular dictionary, you can look in another dictionary. If you have enough dictionaries and access to the Internet, you can usually find the meaning of a word.
However, what happens when you find a Japanese word that you need to translate, and you are not sure what English word to use? This is more difficult. When we proofread at Aaron, we sometimes come across words that are not commonly used. Given our years of education and reading, we always check unfamiliar words.
If the word or term is a technical one, we can find examples in our dictionaries or on the Internet. It is probably impossible to know all the new technical terms, so this happens fairly frequently. Sometimes though, there are non-technical words we do not know. Then, when we look in the dictionary, we often find that the translation has used a very old word, which is not normally used anymore.
It is in the dictionary, but it is not normally used. So, if you look up a word for a translation, have several options, and don't know what to do, what can you do? You can always try the sample sentences in your dictionary, but there may not be enough samples. You can try Google or Yahoo! Online you will be able to see how the words are used and which words are more commonly used. This is time consuming but necessary both to do a good job and to make certain that your language ability is growing. The online checking procedure will give you more information and help you decide which word to use.
2. Sushi or Raw Fish?
If you go abroad, you will see that sushi is a popular food these days. Many people eat sushi. However, nobody likes raw fish. The same is true of calamari. If you go to Italian restaurants in English speaking countries, many people eat fried calamari. It is an Italian food. Nobody likes squid in English speaking countries though, and nobody wants to eat fried squid. However, calamari is squid! Be careful when you pick your words!
3. Tipping and Housekeeping
Many Japanese people say that you should tip housekeeping when you stay in a hotel in the United States. The housekeeper is the person who makes your bed, brings fresh towels, and cleans your room. Housekeepers work hard, and most are poorly paid. So, if you do want to tip them, go ahead! Still, most Americans do not. We normally tip haircutters, table servers, maitre’ds, taxi drivers, porters, and bellhops, but not housekeepers.
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