Best Practices for Multilingual Terminology in the Life Sciences

In the life science industry, your glossaries will play a significant role in the translation and localization process. Unlike a simple dictionary definition, a glossary is a necessary instrument for translators. It eliminates any ambiguity while dealing with your various industry or company specific terminology and phrases.

As a result of globalization of production and distribution today, it is imperative that your branding and messaging remains consistent throughout the translation process. A well-planned glossary includes your terms and phrases which are well-defined along with verified translated versions. That provides your linguists and users a standard usage guide to work from.

With this in mind, terminology management systems (TMS) are becoming increasingly popular and necessary. Terminology management systems provide a clear method of organizing your various glossaries and assigning a set of guidelines for the usage of terms, abbreviations, acronyms, and keywords across the entire product development cycle. These systems create streamlined approaches for verifying your translations by establishing separate glossaries such as user interfaces or untranslatable terms.

Six Steps to Manage Your Multilingual Terminology

1. Identify – What are the key terms you will use with your product that you need localized.
2. Extract – Utilize legacy terms from other versions of your product and any associated documentation and determine what it means.
3. Define – Look at each term and determine how and when you should use it.
4. Import – Gather all your terms together in an organized location where they can be easily accessible (software, TMS, etc.)
5. Translate – Translate terms or phrases into all of your target languages and verify their usage for consistency in various usages.
6. Assist – Share your collection with different groups that will be a part of the life cycle of your product internationally.

The life science industry is highly regulated, as a result the correct terminology needs to be consistent throughout your submission process. What may seem like an unnecessary initial expense can help save you time and money in the end by avoiding costly and unnecessary errors.

With CSOFT, you can be confident that your brand, message, and content are received by your target audience the way you intended. No misinterpretation, no confusion – just clarity. Visit our site today to learn more about terminology management systems.