Professional Translation Skill

Provide professional, high-quality translation using Claude's native language understanding and generation capabilities.

Overview

This skill enables accurate, context-aware translation between languages while preserving:

Technical terminology
Code blocks and syntax
Markdown formatting
Cultural appropriateness
Original tone and intent

Translation Workflow

Step 1: Analyze Source Content

Before translating:

Identify the source language (if not explicitly provided)
Understand the content type (technical documentation, article, UI text, etc.)
Note any technical terms, code blocks, or special formatting
Determine the appropriate tone and style

Step 2: Perform Translation

Apply professional translation principles:

Accuracy:

Preserve the exact meaning of the original text
Maintain technical accuracy, especially for domain-specific content
Keep numerical values, dates, and proper nouns appropriate for the target locale

Fluency:

Produce natural, idiomatic text in the target language
Avoid literal word-for-word translation
Use appropriate sentence structure for the target language

Format Preservation:

Keep all Markdown syntax exactly as-is (headings, lists, links, etc.)
Preserve code blocks completely unchanged
Maintain image references and paths
Keep HTML/JSX tags and attributes unchanged
CRITICAL for MDX - Bold/Italic spacing:
- Always add a space after **bold** or *italic* before the next character
- Example: **Text:** word → Ensure space after the second **
- Correct: **粗体：** 文字 (space after **)
- Wrong: **粗体：**文字 (no space, will break MDX rendering)
- This is especially important for non-Latin languages (Chinese, Korean, Japanese)
- Apply to all bold/italic patterns: **...**, *...*, __...__, _..._

Technical Terms:

For widely recognized technical terms (API, HTTP, Git), keep in English or use standard translations
For product names and brand names, keep original
Use target language conventions for technical documentation

Step 3: Language-Specific Guidelines

Chinese (Simplified - zh):

Use simplified Chinese characters (简体中文)
Technical terms: Keep English when widely used (e.g., API, SDK) or use standard Chinese translations
Punctuation: Use Chinese punctuation (。、，！？) for text, but keep English punctuation in code
Tone: Professional and clear, use 您 for formal contexts

French (fr):

Use proper French accents (é, è, à, ô, etc.)
Technical terms: Use standard French translations when they exist (e.g., "ordinateur" not "computer")
Tone: Maintain formal "vous" unless context clearly indicates informal tone
Numbers: Use French formatting (space for thousands: 1 000 not 1,000)

Korean (ko):

Use appropriate honorific level (formal 합니다 style for documentation)
Technical terms: Common terms stay in English, but use Korean for general concepts
Tone: Professional and respectful
Mixed script: Acceptable to mix Korean with English technical terms

English (en):

Use clear, professional English
Follow US spelling conventions unless specified otherwise
Technical terms: Use industry-standard terminology
Tone: Professional but accessible

Step 4: Quality Check

Before delivering translation:

Verify all code blocks remain unchanged
Check that Markdown formatting is preserved
Ensure technical terms are handled consistently
Confirm the translation reads naturally in the target language
Validate that links, images, and references still work

Output Format

Present translations clearly:

For single translations: Provide the translated text directly, maintaining all original formatting.

For multiple languages: Use clear section headers to separate each language:

## English (en)
[Translated content]

## 中文 (zh)
[Translated content]

## Français (fr)
[Translated content]

## 한국어 (ko)
[Translated content]

Special Cases

Code Comments

Translate comments inside code blocks only if explicitly requested
Default: Keep code (including comments) unchanged

Mixed Content

For content mixing multiple languages, preserve the intentional multilingual parts
Only translate what should be translated

Cultural References

Adapt idioms and cultural references to equivalent concepts in target language
When no equivalent exists, provide a culturally neutral translation that preserves meaning

Acronyms and Abbreviations

Keep widely-known acronyms in original form (HTML, CSS, API, REST, etc.)
Spell out and translate acronyms specific to the source language

Examples

Example 1: Technical Documentation

Source (en):

# Getting Started

Install the package using npm:

\`\`\`bash
npm install my-package
\`\`\`

The API provides three endpoints for data retrieval.

Target (zh):

# 快速开始

使用 npm 安装该包：

\`\`\`bash
npm install my-package
\`\`\`

该 API 提供三个数据检索端点。

Example 2: Preserving Technical Terms

Source (en): "The React component uses hooks for state management."

Target (zh): "该 React 组件使用 hooks 进行状态管理。"

Target (fr): "Le composant React utilise des hooks pour la gestion d'état."

Target (ko): "React 컴포넌트는 상태 관리를 위해 hooks를 사용합니다."

Example 3: Markdown Preservation

Source:

> **Note:** This is important.

See [documentation](https://example.com) for details.

Translation maintains exact same structure:

> **注意：** 这很重要。

详情请参阅[文档](https://example.com)。

Best Practices

Context is key: Understanding the content type and audience improves translation quality
Consistency: Use the same translation for recurring terms throughout a document
Natural flow: Prioritize readability in the target language over literal translation
Preserve intent: Maintain the original purpose and tone of the content
Ask when uncertain: If target language or specific terminology is unclear, ask for clarification

Notes

This skill uses Claude's native multilingual capabilities, no external translation APIs required
Translation quality benefits from understanding the full context of the content
For very large documents, consider translating section by section to maintain quality
Always preserve code, links, and formatting exactly as they appear in the source

translator