Light Versus Full MTPE

Although it’s inadvisable to fully rely on machine translations, there are certain contexts when they can be useful. MTPE – machine translation post editing – is the process where a human edits a translation that a machine made to ensure its quality. This can sometimes be faster than translating from scratch, especially for very simple content. Typically, there are two styles of MTPE: light post editing and full post editing.

Light post editing involves very minimal changes to the machine translated text. It could include correcting grammar and spelling mistakes if they affect meaning, fixing mistakes the machine added, rewriting any confusing text, and removing any superfluous or unneeded translation.

This can be a difficult task for detail-oriented translators who wish to fix every mistake and error in the text. Light post editing is less costly and works best for text that will stay within the company. Text that will be customer facing should not be translated through light MTPE.

Full post editing is a lengthier process that ensures absolute accuracy. The translator must check all translations to see if they are accurate in the target language. This includes checking terminology, changing syntax to fit the target language, making sure content is fluent and stylistically accurate, checking for cultural references and idioms, and correcting all errors.

The end result of full post editing should read as if it was translated from scratch by a professional. Sometimes the effort, cost, and time required to get a good full MTPE job completed is the same as getting something translated from scratch.

It can be tough to figure out whether MTPE is right for your project, and if so, which style to choose. You should consult with a good language service provider to figure out your exact needs based on the project and language. Contact us today for a free quote on your next translation project.