How to translate with ChatGPT! A thorough explanation of how to use it and examples of prompts

ChatGPT supports multiple languages ​​and provides translations based on a sophisticated contextual understanding. . However, other translation services may be more suitable than ChatGPT when considering the style of text and cultural background, or seeking the accuracy of a particular expression.

In this article, we will explain how to translate using ChatGPT, including prompts and actual output examples.
We will also examine the benefits and limitations of translation using ChatGPT, while comparing it with other well-known translation services such as DeepL and Google Translation. Please read to the end.

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Have the specified theme be output in English

Instead of preparing the text you want to translate, you can also use it as "telling a specific theme or the content you want to output and having it output in English."

Examples of prompts

 Create an English sentence with words of gratitude for your friendship.

This gave me the following answer:

Output English from a simple theme

If you give instructions on what you want to output to ChatGPT like this, you will receive a multilingual answer in writing that matches the subject.

Be sure to point out any translation errors or nuances

ChatGPT not only translates the sentences given to you, but also allows you to point out errors in expressions and areas for improvement.

Examples of prompts

 Could you point out any mistranslations for the following sentences?

{English and phrases}

Using the above prompt, we asked ChatGPT if the translation of the phrase " cat-wearing a cat , which is a typical Japanese expression," is correct.

Pointing out mistranslation

This way, ChatGPT can properly identify Japanese idioms.

If you translate expressions unique to Japanese into English literally, they often end up being unnatural. On the other hand, ChatGPT is good at understanding the context of natural languages, so it is possible to not only translate but also to properly understand the meaning and generate answers .

[Related articles]
➡️An easy-to-understand explanation of how to use ChatGPT for English proofreading and prompts

Key points when using ChatGPT for translation

Here, we explain the key points when using ChatGPT for translation, divided into three perspectives: specifying the output format , using prompt methods , and requesting proofreading .
Keep these points in mind and translate effectively with ChatGPT.

Specify the output format

An effective way to get ChatGPT to generate the desired sentence is to specify the nuance and scene .
For example, when you have your email address translated to a client, you can add phrases such as "casual tone" and "business-like" to create sentences that fit your needs more.

In fact, we will compare the output when you request translation without specifying an output format and when you request output with specifying an output format .

If you request a translation without specifying an output format
Entered prompt

 Translate the following sentences into English:
Thank you for your help.
I'm Yamada Taro from the Japan ○○ Association, a general incorporated association.

●I arrived at the Osaka branch on the day of the month (●day).
Thank you very much for your continued support while working at the head office.

This is my first time living here,
I would like to refresh my mood and work harder.
Please contact us if you are in the area.

We look forward to your continued guidance and encouragement.

The output results are here. Although it was translated correctly, the result was that it felt like "I just translated the given sentence."

Output when requesting translation without specifying the output format

So, this time I'll try requesting by specifying the output format, saying, "Translate it into business-like English."

Output format specified The prompt you entered is here.

 Translate the following sentence into business-like English.
Thank you for your help.　
                                           I'm Yamada Taro from the Japan ○○ Association, a general incorporated association.

●I arrived at the Osaka branch on the day of the month (●day).
Thank you very much for your continued support while working at the head office.

This is my first time living here,
I would like to refresh my mood and work harder.
Please contact us if you are in the area.

We look forward to your continued guidance and encouragement.

The following was an English sentence that was rewritten into natural text that could be used as is in actual email sentences, as shown below.

Output when you request translation after specifying the output format

As you can see from this example, you can create sentences that meet your needs by specifying the format you want, such as the format you want, and more.

Use Prompt Engineering

Creating the appropriate prompt is essential to direct the direction and content of the text generated by ChatGPT.
If the prompt is poor, the instructions may not be communicated well to ChatGPT and may not be able to get the desired output.

The key point is a technique called prompt engineering . This is a technique to clarify the structure of the prompt and improve the output accuracy of ChatGPT.
There are many papers and methods related to prompt engineering published, but the most representative methods such as Zero Shot and Fushot are simple and easy to use even for beginners.

This technique is very useful for using LLM such as ChatGPT, even for translation purposes, so we recommend that you learn prompt engineering.

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➡️A complete guide to prompt engineering! Also introduce example sentences that can be used in ChatGPT

Ask for proofreading of generated sentences

ChatGPT can also be used as a grammar proofreading tool for proofreading and correcting English sentences. By asking ChatGPT to proofread your text, you can get instant feedback, which also saves time and money.

Until now, it has been quite difficult for Japanese people to write native English (the online English proofreading service was almost powerless), but using ChatGPT makes it easy to write and conveys the context, so it's a revolution. When I actually look at the output, all the parts that the RT source says are problematic have been fixed, which is good. https://t.co/f6nDcNWjZj pic.twitter.com/LW9ynIJJnV

— Imos (@imos) December 5, 2022

Another effective method is to have ChatGPT output the translation, then pass the outputted text back to ChatGPT to brush up on the text .
This allows for smooth translation and proofreading.

Comparison of ChatGPT and famous translation services (DeepL/Google Translation)

Here. We will compare the translation results of DeepL and Google Translate , a typical translation service, with the translation results of ChatGPT , and consider the differences and characteristics of the output results of the two.
The text used in the translation is excerpted from the novel version of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.

Original text

Mr and Mrs Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much. They were the last people you'd expect to be involved in anything strange or mysterious, because they just didn't hold with such nonsense.
Mr Dursley was the director of a firm called Grunnings, which made drills. He was a big, beefy man with hardly any neck, although he did have a very large moustache. Mrs Dursley was thin and blonde and had almost twice the usual amount of neck, which came in very useful as she spent so much of her time craning over garden fences, spying on the neighbors. The Dursleys had a small son called Dudley and in their opinion there was no finale boy anywhere.
Source: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

ChatGPT vs DeepL

The table below compares the results of translations for ChatGPT and DeepL.

ChatGPT Answers

DeepL's Answer

The Dursleys are proud to live at 4 Privet Drive and can confidently say that they are very normal. They were the last people involved in any strange and mysterious things and I didn't agree with such nonsense. Dursley was the president of a company called Grunnings, which manufactures drills. He was a large man with almost no neck and had a very large beard. Mrs. Dursley was slender and blonde, and had nearly twice the length of her neck as normal . This has been extremely helpful for her to lean on the garden fence most of her time and keep an eye on the neighbors. The Dursleys have a little son named Dewdley, and they are a wonderful boy nowhere to be found.

The Dursleys, who live at 4 Privet Drive, proudly said they were totally normal. We proudly thought we were completely normal . Because they never thought they would get caught up in something strange and mysterious. Because they don't do such a ridiculous thing. Because they don't let such silly talk. Dursley was a director of a company called Grannings, which manufactures drills. He was a director of a drill manufacturing company. He was a well-built man, had a large mustache with almost no neck. Mrs. Dursley was thin and blonde, with a neck nearly twice as much as normal , her neck was shaking her head through the garden fence, looking at her neighbors. The Dursleys had a small son named Dudley. He had a little son named Dudley.

Comparing both answers, there are differences in some expressions and selected words, although the basic sentence structure and information for both are accurate. Below are a few points.

• "I can say it with confidence," he said, "I was proud."
  Both of these convey the same meaning, but "I can say it with confidence" feels a bit exaggerated. Here, the DeepL answer is a more common and gentle expression.
  
  

• "It was nearly twice the length of the neck as normal" and "It was nearly twice the length of the normal"
  This also doesn't have much difference in nuance, but DeepL's answer is a more concise and natural expression.
  
  

• DeepL's answers include the part where they said, "We were proud to be completely normal," and the part where we said, "We had a little son named Dudley**** at the end of the sentence, but for some reason, the same sentence was output twice, although the sentence itself was slightly different.

ChatGPT vs Google Translation

Using the same sentence as before, we compared the translation results for ChatGPT and Google Translation.

ChatGPT Answers

Google Translated Answers

The Dursleys are proud to live at 4 Privet Drive and can confidently say that they are very normal. They were the last people involved in any strange and mysterious things and I didn't agree with such nonsense. Dursley was the president of a company called Grunnings, which manufactures drills. He was a large man with almost no neck and had a very large beard. Mrs. Dursley was slender and blonde, and had nearly twice the length of her neck as normal. This has been extremely helpful for her to lean on the garden fence most of her time and keep an eye on the neighbors. The Dursleys have a little son named Dewdley, and they are a wonderful boy nowhere to be found .

The Dursleys, who live at 4th Privet Street, said with pride that they were totally normal, thank you . They were people who could not expect to be involved in anything strange or mysterious. Because they couldn't accept such nonsense. Mr. Dursley was a director of a company called Grunnings, which manufactures drills. He was a large, sturdy man with little neck, but had a very large mustache. Mrs. Dursley was skinny and blonde, with a neck nearly twice as much as normal, but this was extremely helpful as she spent a lot of time climbing up the garden fence and monitoring the neighbors. The Dursleys had a small son named Dudley, but in their opinion there was no more respectable boy.

When comparing the results of the two, we also see some characteristics.

• In Google Translate, the part "in their opinion" is omitted in ChatGPT, while in Google Translate it outputs a literal translation. Considering the previous and subsequent sentences, it is more natural to omit this part.

• Additionally, the "Thank you" text in the Goggle translation answer directly translates the original sentence "Thank you very much." However, given the context, it contains sarcasm and sarcasm, so it is thought that it would be more appropriate to translate it here.

These comparisons suggest that DeepL is more appropriate in situations where emotion and expressiveness are important , and ChatGPT is better when you want to faithfully convey the meaning of the sentence .
Although Google Translate has the advantages of being supported by many languages ​​and having a large number of characters that can be entered, looking at the results this time, there were no outstanding advantages.
When using the service, it is important to understand the characteristics of each translation service and use it according to your purpose.

summary

In this article, we explained how to use ChatGPT for translation, what to be careful about, and the differences between them and typical translation services.
ChatGPT functions as a multilingual translation service, allowing for accurate translation with advanced contextual understanding.
On the other hand, although DeepL can generate contextual translations compared to ChatGPT, there are a number of errors such as duplicated expressions.
Furthermore, in order to effectively translate with ChatGPT, specifying the output format, using prompt methods, and requesting proofreading is essential.

As can be seen from comparisons with other translation services, ChatGPT is excellent at communicating information, but it has its limits in situations where emotion and expressiveness are important.

Understand the characteristics of ChatGPT and other translation services and make appropriate use of them according to your purpose!

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