An equal translation communicates any expressive meaning from the source language in an equal way in the target language. Especially notice the forms in the source text that communicate certain kinds of emotions and choose forms in the target language that communicate the same emotions. Examples of some of these forms follow.

Idioms

Description — An idiom is a group of words that has a meaning that is different from what one would understand from the meanings of the individual words. Determine the meaning of idioms, proverbs, and figures of speech and translate them with expressions in your language that have the same meaning. Usually idioms cannot be translated literally into another language. The meaning of the idiom has to be expressed in a way that is natural in the Other Language.

For example, these three translations all have the same meaning. See Acts 18:6:

• “Your blood be upon your heads! I am innocent.” (RSV)
• “If you are lost, you yourselves must take the blame for it! I am not responsible.” (GNB)
• “If God punishes you, it is because of you, not me!” (TFT)

These are all accusations of guilt. Some are using idioms with the word “blood” or “lost,” while the third is more direct using the word “punishes.” In order for your translation to be equal, it must also express an accusation in an emotional way, and may use an idiom, as long as both the form of the accusation and the idiom are appropriate for the target language and culture.

Figures of Speech

Description — A figure of speech is a special way of saying something in order to catch attention or express an emotion about what is said. The meaning of a figure of speech as a whole is different from the normal meaning of the individual words.

Here are some examples:

• I was shattered! The speaker was not literally broken, but he felt very bad.
• He closed his ears to what I was saying. Meaning, “he chose to not listen to what I was saying.”
• The wind moaned in the trees. This means that the wind blowing through the trees sounded like a person moaning.
• The whole world came to the meeting. Everyone in the world did not attend the meeting. Most likely there were many people at the meeting.

Each language uses different figures of speech. Make sure you can:

• recognize that a figure of speech is being used
• recognize the purpose of the figure of speech
• recognize the real meaning of the figure of speech

It is the real meaning of the whole figure of speech that should be translated into your language, not the meaning of the individual words. Once you understand the real meaning, you can choose an expression in the target language that communicates that same meaning and emotion.