Glossary
Interpreter Terms & Vocabulary
15 essential interpreter terms with plain-English definitions: the vocabulary you’ll hear in training and on day one.
Key interpreter vocabulary
These 15 terms come up constantly in interpreter training, on the job and in interviews. Knowing them helps you follow instructions, document accurately and sound prepared.
- Accuracy
- Conveying meaning faithfully.
- CAT tools
- Computer-assisted translation software.
- Code of ethics
- Professional standards.
- Consecutive interpreting
- Interpreting after the speaker pauses.
- Cultural broker
- Helping bridge cultural gaps.
- Glossary
- A list of terms and translations.
- Impartiality
- Not taking sides.
- OPI
- Over-the-phone interpreting.
- Register
- Level of formality in language.
- Sight translation
- Reading a document aloud in another language.
- Simultaneous interpreting
- Interpreting while the speaker talks.
- Source language
- The original language.
- Target language
- The language translated into.
- Translation memory
- A database of translated segments.
- VRI
- Video remote interpreting.
Practice these terms
Test yourself with the free Interpreter practice test: it includes vocabulary questions built from this list. For a complete course, see Interpreter training.
Browse terms from every career in our career glossary.