The Technology of Translation - 6 Minute English

Technology offers new ways to translate between languages. Is this translation accurate? How does it work? Learn some new vocabulary with Sam and Rob as they discuss the relationship between translation, technology and the human brain.

This week's question:
Braniff, an American airline, famously made a translation error in one of their adverts.
How did they mistranslate the phrase "fly in leather"?
a) fly in lava
b) fly on a cow
c) fly naked
Watch the video to find out the answer!

Vocabulary
metaphor
way of describing a person or thing by comparing it to something else, often found in poetry and literature

It's raining cats and dogs!
(idiom) It is raining heavily!

chunk
a large part of something

rote
learnt by memory in order to be repeated rather than properly understood

automated
done by machines instead of humans

flummox
confuse someone so much that they don't know what to do

You can find a quiz and more on our website!
https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/6-minute-english_2022

[Cover: Getty Images]

More 6 Minute English episodes:
Going through the menopause
https://youtu.be/z2JsYmGmF8E

Bitcoin's energy cost
https://youtu.be/DD9IbPnCxMM

The benefits of boredom
https://youtu.be/8XOA3-XwTaQ

'I love my language!'
https://youtu.be/2z6A62BO2zc

Making sense of the census
https://youtu.be/u6GOoQnJicg

How can we make the web a better place?
https://youtu.be/wMQjmpVgor8​​​​

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