Matrixx0070 When to use
Use this when a faithful translation is correct but the tone is wrong for the audience — too stiff for a youth app, too casual for a legal notice, or using the wrong formality pronoun. It tunes register, politeness level, warmth, and voice while preserving meaning. Often runs as a pass after i18n-translate.
Not for: first-pass meaning translation (use i18n-translate), unit/date/culture adaptation (use i18n-localize), term lists (use i18n-glossary), or captions (use i18n-subtitle).
Method
- Define the audience and channel: who reads this, where, and what relationship (peer, customer, authority)? This sets the target register.
- Identify the target language's formality system: T/V pronouns (tu/vous, du/Sie), honorifics (Japanese keigo), verb politeness levels. Decision point: pick the level that matches the relationship, and apply it consistently.
- Adjust lexical warmth: contractions, exclamations, emoji, slang for casual; full forms, hedges, and measured verbs for formal.
- Preserve the core message and any legal commitments — tone changes wording, never meaning or obligations.
- Decision point: if the source mixes registers (casual body, formal disclaimer), keep the split intentionally rather than flattening it.
- Read aloud in the target: does it sound like the intended speaker to the intended listener?
Example
Source meaning (EN): "Your subscription will renew tomorrow."
Formal (de, to a business customer): "Wir möchten Sie darüber informieren, dass sich Ihr Abonnement morgen verlängert." (uses "Sie", measured phrasing)
Casual (de, to a consumer app user): "Kleiner Hinweis: dein Abo verlängert sich morgen!" (uses "du", light and friendly)
Same fact, two registers — pronoun and warmth chosen for each audience.
Pitfalls
- Wrong formality pronoun. Using "du"/"tu" with an authority figure (or "Sie"/"vous" with a teen app) reads as rude or cold.
- Inconsistent register. Sliding between formal and casual within one message feels unstable and untrustworthy.
- Tone change that alters obligation. Softening "must" to "might want to" in a legal or safety notice is a meaning bug, not a tone edit.
- Copying source emoji/slang blindly. Casual markers don't map 1:1 across cultures; over-familiarity can offend.
Output format
Audience: <who> Channel: <where> Target register: <formal | neutral | casual>
Formality system: <T/V pronoun | honorific level>
--- Adapted text ---
<text at the chosen register>
--- Tone notes ---
- Pronoun/politeness: <choice>
- Warmth markers kept/removed: <...>