Translation Errors That Kill Watch Time: Tone, Idioms & Mistranslations

Bad vs good: realistic examples

Idioms shouldn’t be translated word‑for‑word. Use the natural equivalent your audience expects.

• “It’s raining cats and dogs” → not “están lloviendo gatos y perros,” but Spanish “llueve a cántaros”.
• “Piece of cake” → not “pedazo de pastel,” but Spanish “pan comido”.
• Prefer common local synonyms over dictionary defaults and preserve tone (playful vs professional).

Real‑world pitfalls

Certain language pairs and idioms cause recurring errors. Watch for these patterns when you review localized phrasing.

• False friends: Spanish “embarazada” (pregnant) vs English “embarrassed”; French “préservatif” (condom) vs English “preservative”.
• Culture‑specific idioms translated literally.
• Over‑formal tone for casual audiences (and vice versa).

Fix it with a lightweight review loop

Build a simple pass that adds context and verifies nuance. It takes minutes and prevents most retention‑killing mistakes.

1. Generate translations in ReTranslate.
2. Add a one‑line note with context and audience vibe (or glossary/notes where supported).
3. Review phrasing against top comments/keywords for the market.
4. Publish and re‑check average view duration by country once there’s sufficient volume. Detailed analytics can lag 48–72 hours.

Find the right tone per market

Avoid broad cultural assumptions. Instead, research successful creators in your niche for each target market to learn how they title and describe videos — then adapt to your brand voice.

• Check leading channels’ tone and vocabulary in your category.
• Match formality to audience expectations (and keep it consistent across a series).
• Use human review for idioms, humor, and slang where precision matters.

Use AI as a starting point

AI translations accelerate the process, but final copy should be reviewed. Treat generated text as a first draft and refine for tone, idioms, and local keywords.