Excel: Translate with Excel

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Problem: I have a client whose German subsidiary sent me an Excel file. The headings are in German. I need to figure out what each column means.

  1. A rough translation will appear.

    Strategy: Excel added a translation interface to the Review tab of the ribbon. Although the translations are not perfect, they can give you a general idea of the meaning of a passage or paragraph. Here's how it works:

    1. Select a cell that contains text you want to translate.
    2. Select Review, Translate. The Research task pane appears along the right side of the window.
    3. In the From dropdown, choose German.
    4. In the To dropdown, choose English. In a few moments, a rough translation will appear in the Research pane.

    Additional Details: The Research pane offers a link to Translation Options. The Translation Options dialog allows you to prevent translation between certain languages. If you have a rogue employee who is addicted to ordering Italian shoes on company time, perhaps you would want to turn off the Italian to English language pair. The dialog also allows you to choose the translation service to use for any given language. Many language pairs offer only Microsoft Translator. Some language pairs offer a choice between Microsoft Translator and WorldLingo.

    Additional Details: If you need to translate an Excel function for someone in your Switzerland headquarters, Excel MVP Mourad Louha runs an Excel Formula Translator at http://en.excel-translator.de/. You can learn that SVERWEIS, BUSCARV, PHAKU, PROCV, FINN.RAD are all different ways to say VLOOKUP.