{"id":83127,"date":"2021-07-27T23:18:22","date_gmt":"2021-07-27T14:18:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/voyapon.com\/?p=83127"},"modified":"2024-11-25T22:19:41","modified_gmt":"2024-11-25T13:19:41","slug":"japanese-translation-best-apps","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/voyapon.com\/japanese-translation-best-apps\/","title":{"rendered":"The Best Free Japanese Translation Websites and Apps to Use"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
Knowing a few basic Japanese words and holding a conversation can be very helpful in Japan<\/a>, especially in a country where only a handful of people are fluent in English. Translation tools<\/strong> give full-sentence translations and pronunciation aids, while, for those who want to learn Japanese, dictionary-like<\/strong> tools provide examples of use, breakdown of kanji, and grammar information to help deepen your language skills. These tools will quickly become essential when you’re on the go, at work, or a first-time visitor of Japan. However, the wide variety and choices of online translators and dictionaries can be overwhelming. To help with decipher the jungle of translators and dictionaries, here’s our recommendation of the best free online Japanese translators and apps<\/strong>: <\/p>\n\n\n\n Travelers of Japan will want an easy-to-use, convenient translation app for those impromptu conversations you’ll inevitably have here in Japan. Here is a selection of some of the best online translation services for Japanese to English<\/strong>, and their various features for both oral and written use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Google Translate<\/a> is one of the most popular translators with some classic translation features. Entering a text in English results in the translation into Japanese with the three writing systems (hiragana, katakana, and kanji), and in romaji. Romaji is very practical for conversational use when you don\u2019t know how to pronounce kanji <\/a>or how to read the two syllabary alphabets. Users using Google Translate can occasionally have peculiar translation results, though is nonetheless an amazing technology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There is also a<\/strong> vocal translator with voice input<\/strong>. But a huge asset is the scanning and camera feature, which can scan Japanese text.<\/strong> The user hovers the smartphone’s camera over the Japanese text, with kanji, hiragana, and katakana. Japanese syllabaries and kanji are captured, and the translation is instantly displayed in English. This scanning feature is helpful when reading menus and other signage, especially when you’re faced with unknown kanjis. <\/p>\n\n\n One small downside would be that Japanese translations often fall under a neutral or sometimes colloquial level<\/strong>. Also, in terms of vocabulary, Google Translate often presents modern words of English origin<\/strong> more than older words of Japanese origin. For example, it would rather prefer to translate “milk” into\u300c\u30df\u30af\u30eb\u300d(miruku<\/em>), rather than\u300c\u725b\u4e73\u300d(gy\u016bny\u016b<\/em>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n To conclude, Google Translate appears to be highly useful for words, phrases, and short texts<\/strong>. It’s recognized as one of the best online translation tools perfect for general use by tourists<\/strong> and other short-term visitors, though perhaps not the most accurate tool for professionals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Google Translate is available on browser and app (iPhone app on Apple Store for iOS<\/a>, and Android app on Google Pay for Android).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Microsoft Translator<\/a> translates words or paragraphs, as well as texts entered by hand or by voice input. Thanks to a microphone function, it can translate instantly, so the user can hold a live conversation. The translation is displayed on a split-screen<\/strong> presenting the 2 languages. The<\/strong> Phrasebook contains sentences<\/strong> for tourists and business trips, useful to know how to use a word in a real discussion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The app’s built-in camera viewer<\/strong> translates texts from recorded photos. In addition, the camera function allows documents (such as street signs or menus) to be translated on the street.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Microsoft Translator is also available as an app on Apple Store<\/a> and Google Play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For more spontaneous discussions, pocket electronic voice translators can be used. The Japanese staff who can\u2019t speak English may use it while speaking to foreigners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Pocketalk is a portable instant voice translation device<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong> It relies on cloud-based translation engines<\/strong> to provide a vocal bi-directional translation powered by artificial intelligence.<\/strong> It is designed for face-to-face conversations and can translate long and complex sentences. It features a touchscreen, dual microphones, and noise-canceling headsets that allow translations in noisy environments. It also displays conversations in textual transcription.<\/p>\n\n\n Pocketalk doesn\u2019t require a smartphone, but an internet connection is required. The Pocketalk S battery will last for 4.5 hours of continuous talking. If put into sleep mode, it will last for 2.5 days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Also ideal for conversations, WT2 Edge from Timekettle is a hands-free, instant voice conversion translator<\/strong><\/a> using wireless headphones. Several modes of translations<\/strong> are available: with one or both users wearing headphones with the translation voice broadcasted by the smartphone, streamed through the earphones, and\/or displayed on the smartphone screen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n An internet connection is required, though an offline English\/Japanese translation package is available for download for offline translations. Earphones require a mobile app, with roughly 12 hours<\/strong>\u00a0of active translation time. Since users will need to use the WT2 Edge earbuds, it is best to use them with friends or acquaintances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are many language teaching methods to learn Japanese. Books, websites, and apps provide tables of hiragana and katakana, grammar lessons, visual dictionaries, kanji dictionaries, dialogues, exercises, and much more. Here are some of the best Japanese-English dictionaries to help your Japanese language learning. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Jisho is a powerful online dictionary that provides advanced grammar information<\/strong><\/a>. It indicates in a sentence which word is a noun, a particle, or a verb, and if the verb is transitive or intransitive.<\/p>\n\n\n Jisho has some unique specialties<\/strong>. Firstly, the drawing function enables users to search for translations by drawing a kanji<\/strong>: start drawing, and Jisho will suggest various kanji. In addition, kanji can be searched by radicals, multiple search terms, tags, and hashtags.<\/strong> Tags are useful for identifying words classified by word classes<\/a>, kanji classified by topics, joyo kanji<\/em> (\u5e38\u7528\u6f22\u5b57, a literacy baseline of kanji to know for daily life in Japan), or words used in the JLPT exams (standardized Japanese-Language Proficiency exams). There is also a voice functionality<\/strong> where users can search by saying a word or a phrase. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The Romaji Desu translator<\/a> focuses on spoken Japanese and pronunciation.<\/strong> The input can be in Japanese (kanji, hiragana, katakana, and romaji), or in English. If you type the sentence in Japanese, the tools provide the transcription in romaji and audio pronunciation, and of course, the translation in English<\/strong>. While Japanese normally has no space between words, Romaji Desu breaks the sentences down into easy-to-read word blocks. <\/p>\n\n\n The romaji to kana converter<\/strong> converts romaji to hiragana and katakana. It is useful if you know the romaji form of a word or phrase and you want to learn how to write it in kana<\/em> (\u4eee\u540d, the Japanese phonological units of hiragana and katakana) and kanji. Like some of the kanji dictionaries, Romaji Desu provides various kanji pronunciations: in onyomi<\/em> (\u97f3\u8aad\u307f, the Chinese reading which normally applies to compound kanji) and in kunyomi<\/em> (\u8a13\u8aad\u307f, the Japanese reading normally used for one character and based on the pronunciation of native Japanese words). The kanji lookup<\/strong> indicates the number of strokes, the drawing order of kanji, and sample words.<\/p>\n\n\n J-Talk\u2019s is especially advantageous for grammar fans.<\/a> It transcribes a Japanese sentence into romaji (which aids in pronunciation) and easy-to-read word blocks.<\/strong> The tool indicates the grammatical classes of the words and categorizes them according to this criterion (e.g. highlight the nouns, all the verbs, etc.). There are several display modes to highlight specific information: romaji, kana, table. <\/p>\n\n\n With the dictionary and translation tool Tangorin, translations can be made by typing English or Japanese<\/a> (romaji, kana, and kanji). It is possible to search by Japanese radicals, making it easier to discover other kanji<\/strong> with common or similar meanings. The grammar features are numerous and precise:<\/strong> katakana version of words, example words, conjugation tables, kanji diagrams for stroke order, and classification of the joyo kanji<\/em>. Let us also mention example sentences with use cases and a proper names dictionary (a glossary of family names, places, companies, etc.). A few tags<\/strong> may be used to narrow down search results.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tangorin is also available as a Google Play app. <\/p>\n\n\n The Midori app is a Japanese\/English dictionary<\/strong><\/a> with approximately 910,000 entries. The search can be made by typing in kana or romaji, and a kanji by drawing its strokes<\/strong>. Each entry shows readings, meanings, kanji breakdown<\/strong> (list of components or radicals), and related words<\/strong> using the kanji. Roughly 6,000 kanji show its stroke order diagrams<\/strong>. Words are placed in 150,000 example sentences with furigana<\/strong>. Let us also mention proper names<\/strong>, place names, given names, company and product names. You can even personalize your app by editing notes on a kanji card.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Midori is available on the Apple Store<\/a>. The app is completely offline, so no internet connection is required.<\/p>\n\n\n Imiwa?<\/a> includes a rich database of kanji, with many grammar information <\/strong>about words: grammatical class, onyomi<\/em> and kunyomi<\/em> readings, forms\/conjugation of verbs, kanji breakdowns. The kanji mode<\/strong> focuses on kanji information (number of strokes, drawing, related kanjis, and JLPT level.) and provides related words and examples of phrases. A JLPT mode<\/strong> sorts the kanji cards according to your JLPT level. You can also bookmark and write notes.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe Best Japanese-English Translation Apps for Travelers in Japan<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Google Translate<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Microsoft Translator<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Pocket Electronic Voice Translators<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Pocketalk <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
WT2 Edge<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The Best Japanese-English Dictionaries for Japanese Learners<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Jisho<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Romaji Desu<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
J-Talk\u2019s<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Tangorin<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n
Midori<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Imiwa?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n