Terminology Management in Translation: Your Guide to the Essentials [2025]

Managing terminology in the translation process is an important component of successful translations for multilingual organizations. Did you know that the vast majority of translation “errors” are actually incorrect terminology translations? So exactly what is terminology management and how does it work? And most importantly, do you need it?

1. Terminology
Management in
Translation: Your Guide
to the Essentials [2025]



Managing terminology in the translation process is an important component of
successful translations for multilingual organizations. Did you know that the
vast majority of translation “errors” are actually incorrect terminology

2. translations? So exactly what is terminology management and how does it
work? And most importantly, do you need it?
In this article, you’ll find everything you need to know about terminology
management, including how to use it for your organization.
Looking for web-based translation software with an easy-to-use terminology
management component? Try Pairaphrase, the AI-powered translation
management system for teams that value smarter, faster and safer translation.
What is terminology management?
Terminology management is the act of identifying “important” terms, storing
and publishing them with the goal of organization-wide consistency. It’s a tool
to improve external and internal communication.
Most organizations use specific terms, whether they are industry-wide or
specific to only them. When an organization operates in multiple languages,
things become more complex. As a result, they often seek to avoid
inconsistencies. This means the organization needs to translate these terms
in a specific way. This is where terminology management comes in.
As the name suggests, the key to terminology management is being able to
“manage” your terms. This means you can catalog, update, reorganize,
publish, or delete them as their use changes over time or they stop being
used altogether. This requires a specific system, tool, or software. The simplest kind is just an
Excel spreadsheet with the terms and their equivalents in another language.
More complex terminology management tools allow you to store and publish
much more information about each term.

3. It also allows you to share (and publish) them with others, in and out of your
organization. Some even create concept maps and diagrams of how terms
relate to each other.
What is terminology?
Let’s start with the basics: What is terminology? In other words, what are
terms?
Put simply, terms are individual words or expressions that relate to a particular
subject or profession. For example, “affidavit” in law, “equity” in business, or
“copolymer” in engineering. Terminology is the entire body of these words in
one particular field. Terms often describe something official or technical. But they can also be
specific to an organization or brand. They include:
●​Jargon
●​Acronyms
●​Synonyms
●​Abbreviations
●​Industry, service, or product names
What is a termbase?
A termbase is a bilingual repository where terminology is stored and managed
for language translation purposes. It is also known as a glossary. This is
basically a database specifically for terms. It’s what is used to store, use, and
publish and share them. An organization can create and use multiple termbases. Since each termbase
is only bilingual, multiple termbases are needed when an organization uses

4. more than one language pair. For example, if you translate English to
Spanish, German and French, you'd have three termbases.
Termbases typically start as glossaries and then uploaded to a translation
software system. That’s why they are referred to as termbases. These
translation systems can provide users the functionality to look up terms and
their translations and even how they are used in context at your organization. You can then insert the correct terms with one click. In some cases, the
translation system will automatically identify terms and pull the translated term
from your termbase as you translate. These solutions let you create custom
translations from your glossary.
Difference between a termbase and a translation
memory
A termbase is often confused with a translation memory. What is the
difference?
While these two tools work together, they have completely different purposes.
A translation memory stores entire sentences and phrases where they’re
referred to as segments. So let’s say you have a text that has a section very
similar to one you’ve already translated. The translation memory can detect
that and suggest the previous translation for the segments that overlap. This saves you from having to translate the same content again and improves
translation consistency, if the previous translation is appropriate.
On the other hand, a termbase only stores words or short expressions, such
as advertising taglines and company slogans. These are terms that need to
be translated in a very specific and consistent way, so you don’t even have
the option to choose a different translation.

5. In this way, a translation memory offers time-saving suggestions, while a
termbase makes sure you don’t stray from strict rules about terminology.
Another benefit you’ll see: If you get your terms right, then you’ll spend less
time post-editing machine translation.
What is in a termbase?
Any termbase has at least two components: terms in the source language and
their equivalents in the target language.
However, some termbases tend to have much more than just the term. Some
can also store:
●​Reference notes.
●​Context.
●​Rules on how you use the term.
●​Pictures (for example, for terms related to pieces of machinery).
●​Terms that are forbidden.
●​Terms that shouldn’t be translated (such as proper names, proprietary
terms, company names, or trademarked terms).
How do you use terminology
management in translation?
Now we know what terminology and its management is. So how does all this
fit into the translation process?
Ideally, you should start with terminology management before beginning to
translate.

6. Terms are the key to meaning and consistency in any technical text. So if
translators identify and define them first, they are also gaining familiarity with
the text and its meaning.
At the same time, you are also setting up a quality system to ensure that all
key terms will be translated correctly throughout all your texts. You’ll make it
less likely to have mistranslations or oversights that can be very
time-consuming to go back and fix. In this way, terminology management not only supports the research process
but also makes translation more efficient and accurate.
How does terminology management
work?
Terminology management software can make the operation of a multilingual
organization much more efficient. But only if you know how to use it well.
Here are some terminology management best practices to follow to set
yourself up for success.
1. Choosing the right terminology management
software
Before you start gathering any information, you’ll need the right place to put it.
After all, you don’t want to create a long document or spreadsheet just to
spend hours manually copying it into a software database. Plan smart and
have a tool ready to use before you begin. Ensure that the software supports importing your spreadsheet file format.
2. Sourcing terms

7. With your tool ready, you can start identifying all the relevant terms. A glossary
creator or terminologist reads through the source texts and picks out the terms
that are the most important and require translation. You’ll want to identify team
members to approve term translations. These decisions are usually based on two factors:
●​The number of times a term appears.
●​The degree of specialization of a term.
3. Creating the termbase
Once you have your key terms, you can create the termbase. At this stage,
the termbase includes:
●​Terms.
●​Word Shapes.
Note: More terms is not necessarily better. Don’t include ambiguous terms
(terms with more than one meaning).
4. Curating the termbase
Next, you need to curate the termbase. This includes checking for synonyms
and adding word shapes. Put simply, a “word shape” means singular vs plural,
initial cap vs lower case, versus all caps. For example, Eats, eat, EAT, eaten,
and ate. To produce custom translations with a neural machine translation engine such
as AWS (Amazon Translate), you’ll need to be particularly mindful of word

8. shapes in your termbases. The more word shapes you include in your
termbases, the better matches you receive.
You also must delete any terms that should not be included.
5. Approving the termbase
Now, all stakeholders must approve the termbase. This is a crucial step to
avoid disagreements arising after hours have already been invested into
translating the terms.
6. Translating the termbase
Once you have an approved termbase, you can begin translating the terms.
It’s useful to collaborate with the original terminologist who sourced them or
in-country managers. This will help you ensure that all the translations are
accurate, consistent, and context-relevant.
7. Using the termbase for terminology management
With the termbase complete, you can distribute it to relevant content creators
via your translation software and begin translating your texts.
It may seem like there’s a lot of work to do before you can actually start using
the software. However, the hours invested in creating your termbase will pay
off exponentially during years of content creation:
●​Writers and content creators can use the termbase as a guideline for
what terms to use and how. All your texts will have greater consistency
and coherence, needing fewer reviews.
●​Translators can integrate it with a CAT (computer assisted translation)
tool. As they translate, the software will automatically identify any key
terms in the documents and suggest the appropriate translation. This

9. makes translations both faster and more accurate. In some cases, your
translation software can produce custom translations using your
termbase.
8. Maintaining and updating a glossary or termbase
You’ll likely need to continuously make updates to your termbase.
Terminologists and in-country managers will add relevant terms, delete others
that are no longer relevant, and apply changes as needed. Your termbases
should be thought of as living repositories. A quality termbase helps your organization keep up with new products or
services, consumer developments, and industry changes.
Benefits of using terminology
management
Now you know how to use terminology management for your organization. But
why is terminology important? Let’s have a look at the main benefits of
terminology management in translation and beyond.
1. Cost and time savings
One of the top benefits of terminology management is the improved
translation quality. The most obvious place you’ll notice this is in translation.
But in fact, these benefits extend to all parts of content creation, from writing
to translation quality assurance (QA):
●​Can optimize for machine translation

10. ●​Translators work faster with CAT-assisted term identification and
translation
●​Reviewers have to make a lot fewer corrections
Everyone has the same clear and easily accessible termbases for users to
reference. And with the right terminology management tool, creators and
translators can save hours of manually looking up and checking these terms,
too.
2. Greater clarity and credibility
Terminology management systems help team members stay consistent. You’ll
use the correct terms across all areas of your organization, from product
development and distribution to customer service.
This creates clarity for both your internal team and customers who read your
manuals, website, or media posts. Everyone is on the same page, leading to
better understanding and compliance with your products. Ultimately, this
creates better credibility for your brand and improved communication efforts.
3. A strong brand voice
Whether you’re writing an internal directive or a social media post, it’s crucial
to keep a clear brand voice. Naturally, the key terms in your field and
organization play a huge role in this.
Customers will easily be able to recognize and understand your terminology. A
surprisingly low amount of companies invest in proper terminology
management, so you’ll stand out from your competition too.
4. Authority and community

11. With proper terminology management, your organization can help educate
users and the general public about the correct use of terms for your products,
services, and topics. People will
begin to turn to you as a knowledgeable authority in your field.
As you get team members and clients on the same page, you’ll build a sense
of community. Everyone within it is fluent in the specific use of your
terminology and feels connected to one another.
What if you don’t use terminology
management?
Terminology management tools have many great benefits, as seen above. But
what happens if you don’t use one? Here are the disadvantages of not using a
terminology management tool:
1. Less productivity
You might skip the hours needed to create the termbase, but in the long run
you’ll spend a lot more in time, money, and stress. Without an easy way to
share and integrate your organization’s terminology, each new team of content
creators or translators will have to research and translate the same terms over
again producing inconsistent translations.
2. More resources
You’ll spend even more time and money correcting content and
communications, as well as dealing with delays in your workflow. You’ll need
to hire more people and allocate more resources for reviews and checking for
oversights that a terminology management tool would easily detect.

12. 3. Unhappy customers, higher support costs
Inconsistencies will almost undoubtedly arise, making both employees and
customers confused. Eventually, unhappy customers may stop buying or
receive poor customer support. Worst case scenario, you might have to deal
with legal issues due to misunderstandings from unclear messaging.
Source url: https://www.pairaphrase.com/blog/terminology-management