Sometimes we come across documents in Become written in another language that we have to work with. If it is a language that we master, that is not a problem. But when it is not, we are in trouble. Fortunately, there are very practical options for translate a word document, or at least a part of the text that we have previously selected.
There are several ways to translate a Word document into multiple languages. Some of them are done through the application itself, although there are many others that use online services to carry out the translation. Both of them can be equally useful to us.
Text translation from Word
The Microsoft Office word processor has a own tool to translate a document or a selected piece of text from it. This is a Word function that translates only the selected word or block of text.
To activate this selective translation function, follow these steps:
- First, of course, We start Word and open the document in which we wish to carry out the translation.
- After we look for the text to translate and select it with the help of the cursor.
- Now, at the top of the screen, we go to the tab "Check" and we select "Translate".
- Next, click on «Translate selection».*
- After this, a new panel with our translations appears on the right side of the screen. It is almost always the program itself that detects the source language, so all we have to do is select the target language.
- Finally, after executing the translation, we can add it to the text using the button "Insert".
(*) If we want to translate the entire document, not just a fragment of it, we will skip the step in which the fragment to be translated is selected and we will simply use the "Translate" button. The main difference is that Word will create and open a new document with the translated text.
An interesting aspect of this tool is that it offers us other details such as definitions and meanings of translated words in the selected text. All this information is displayed at the bottom of the screen.
To finish, once we have finished translating, we just have to click on the cross icon (“X”) in the translation panel to close it and return to the document.
Translate a Word document with Google Docs
Many users are unaware that Google Docs It has a translation function that can be applied without problems to the Word files that we have uploaded. This function is responsible for translating the text and then saving the translated version on our computer. This is how you do it:
- To begin, we open a new tab in our browser and we are going to Google Drive, which is where the documents that are going to be later edited in Google Docs are uploaded.
- We click on "My unit".
- Then we will "Upload files" and select the document we want to translate.
- We use the right mouse button on the document to select the option "To open with"Followed by "Google Docs".
- Next, a new Google Docs file opens with the content of our Word document. There we go to the menu "Tools" and we select the option «Translate document».
And that's it. The translated document will open in a new tab, with the option to save it separately if we wish.
Online tools to translate Word documents
Finally, it should be noted that there are many websites through which we will be able to carry out total or partial translations of a Word document. Although they all work well in what is the translation itself, it is quite common for them to present some formatting errors in the output document. These are the options we recommend:
DeepL
It is one of the most popular and highly rated online translators. DeepL it is very easy to use and gives excellent results. All we have to do is copy the Word document or the part we want to translate and go to your website from any browser. The rest is very similar to what we would do with Google Translate: paste the text, select the output language (the original language is automatically detected by the website itself) and OK.
Link: DeepL
Document Translator
No need to register or pay any subscription. Document Translator is a totally free tool that allows us to translate our Word documents in a simple way, respecting the original format. This website uses Google Translate services and can perform translations using more than a hundred languages. The entire process is executed in a matter of seconds, offering results with a more than acceptable level of quality.
Link: Document Translator
Grammarly
Finally, another useful tool specially designed for those looking for a quality translation for their Word documents. To use the services of Grammarly you have to resort to the not always comfortable "copy and paste" system, but it's worth it, because the translation result is excellent. Another advantage of this tool is that it can be added to the Chrome browser at no cost.
Link: Grammarly