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Text function

TRANSLATE

Translates text from one language to another using Microsoft Translator.

OccasionalDifficulty 1200 · ProficientUsage rank #193 of 520
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When to use it

Translates text between languages using Microsoft Translator. Language codes are two-letter ISO codes; the source can be omitted to auto-detect.

The shape of it

Syntax
=TRANSLATE(text, [source_language], [target_language])
Example
=TRANSLATE(A2,"en","es")

Worked examples

  • Basic translation

    =TRANSLATE("Hello","en","es") → Hola

    English to Spanish.

  • Auto-detect source

    =TRANSLATE(A2,,"fr") → Bonjour

    Source language auto-detected.

  • To German

    =TRANSLATE("Thank you","en","de") → Danke

    English to German.

Worth knowing

  • Translations are sent to Microsoft's service, so avoid confidential text.
  • Results recalculate; paste as values to freeze them.
  • DETECTLANGUAGE tells you what a cell is written in.

Where it goes wrong

  • #VALUE! for an unsupported language code.
  • Requires an internet connection and Microsoft 365.

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