# Reliable translation software??

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reliable-translation-software/161792>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [March 16, 2003, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reliable-translation-software/161792 "2003-03-16T15:23:03Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![NoGoodNamesLeft](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/8797f3/32.png) [@NoGoodNamesLeft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NoGoodNamesLeft)\
**Post date:** [March 16, 2003, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reliable-translation-software/161792/1 "2003-03-16T15:23:03Z")

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I’m in need of a reliable (key word here) translation software. Babel fish I find tends to do a good enough job for getting the general idea, but I wouldn’t use it for actual letter-writing.

Does anybody know of any really good translators (free or pay) thaty will give a highly accurate translation in multiple languages?

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**Author:** ![BaldTaco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/47e85d/32.png) [@BaldTaco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BaldTaco)\
**Post date:** [March 16, 2003, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reliable-translation-software/161792/2 "2003-03-16T17:05:42Z")

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There are none. The inherent limitation of machine translation is that computers can’t really comprehend context. Think how many words have multiple meanings. You’ll just have to live with Babelfish for now, or shell out big bucks for human translation.