Sarcasm
Rhetorical use of language which is intended to ridicule. Sarcasm is similar to irony, but is more intense and is negative in its impact, whereas irony is not always intended to be negative:
Elijah was sarcastic to the prophets of Baal:
1 Kings 18.27 About noontime Elijah began mocking them. "You'll have to shout louder," he scoffed, "for surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or he is relieving himself. Or maybe he is away on a trip, or he is asleep and needs to be wakened!" (NLT)
The intended sarcasm will often not be preserved if the original is translated literally. In such cases the translator may need to include some clues, as the NLT translators have done with the words "mocking" and "scoffed", to indicate that something is meant to be sarcastic.
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Schoolbook grammar
Same as Prescriptive grammer.
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Semantics
Semantics is the study of meaning. Translators strive to preserve as much of the meaning of the original text as possible. Total meaning occurs not only in individual words, but also in how those words are inter-related through syntax, including interclausal connections, as well as meaning that is contributed by the cultural and speech context. See also Pragmatics.
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Semiotics
See the following website:
Semiticism
A Semiticism is a linguistic form from the Hebrew language used by the writers of Greek in the New Testament. A Semiticism is a kind of loan translation. Also pronounced Semitism. Also called Hebraism.
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Septuagint
Translation of the Old Testament into Greek. Abbreviated as LXX (Roman numberal for 70), which stands for the 70 men said to have translated the Septuagint.
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Simile
Simile is a figure of speech that indicates a comparison. The existence of the comparison is explicitly signaled with a word such as "as" or "like." Paul used a simile when he told Timothy:
NIV 2 Tim. 2.3 Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.
The word "soldier" is boldfaced here to show that it is the simile. This simile, like all figures of speech, is not meant to be understood literally. Paul was not saying that Timothy was a literal soldier, but that he was to have qualities which were similar to those of a soldier.
Jesus used the mustard seed as a picture to illustrate the nature of the kingdom of God:
NIV Mark 4.31 It (the kingdom of God) is like a mustard seed
Compare Metaphor, in which the figurative comparison is implicitly signaled.
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Source language
The language from which something is being translated. Abbreviated SL. Sometimes called the donor language.
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Syntactic function
See Syntactic function.
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Synecdoche
Synecdoche is figurative language in which a part of something is substituted for the whole or vice versa:
In Luke 3.6 "all flesh" is synecdoche whose meaning is accurately and clearly translated as "all people" (NLT), "all mankind" (LB, TEV, NIV, REB), "everyone" (CEV, ISV), not literally the flesh (skin) of people.
Similarly, in Matt. 16.17 "flesh and blood" is synecdoche meaning "any human being" (TEV, REB, NLT), "any human source" (LB), "no human agency" (NJB), "no person" (NCV), and "no human" (GW).
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Synonym
A word that means the same as another word. Theoretically, it is unlikely that any words in any language are perfect, complete synonyms, that is, having exactly the same meaning, at all levels on language including pragmatics, connotation, and register. But there are often words in a language which mean the same, for all practical purposes, and these are reasonably called synonyms. See Synonymous.
The following words are synonyms for "died", as in the sentence "He died:"
expired
perished
departed
passed away
The last two terms, at least, are euphemisms for "died." Following are even more idiomatic phrases for "died:"
kicked the bucket
bit the dust
bought the farm
cashed in his chips
checked out
went to his reward
Some other examples of synonyms are found at these websites:
Translators need to be familiar with synonyms of their language. Many times a synonym will be more satisfactory in a certain context, due to its having different connotations or being from a more appropriate register of language than another word.
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Synonymous
Synonymous refers to having the same meaning as another word or utterance. See Synonym. Paraphrase is a form of synonymy in that it expresses the same meaning in other words.
Finding synonymous expressions is a perfectly legitimate technique for translators, especially when one translation form is unacceptable for one reason or another.
The following website discusses synonymy in translation:
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Synonymous parallelism
Synonymous parallelism is the rhetorical use of synonyms or near synonyms to refer to the same entity or action. Synonymous parallelism is one of the most frequent Hebraic poetic structures.
Some people refers to instances of synonymous parallelism as doublets.
Psalm 119:105 illustrates synonymous parallelism:
"Your word is a lamp to my feet
And a light to my path." (NASB)
In this poetic couplet, lamp and light both refer to the same entity, the figurative illumination of the word of God.
Synonymous parallelism is a subtype of rhetorical parallelism.
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Syntactic function
See the Syntactic function webpage.
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Syntax
Syntax and grammar are terms which are essentially synonymous for the general public--and for many speakers, syntax would not be a term in their normal working vocabulary. Many linguists differentiate syntax and grammar, although many linguists, including some who differentiate these terms sometimes, also sometimes use the two terms nearly synonymously. Linguistically, grammar can refer to the overall organization of language or a specific language, and sytax refers, more narrowly, to the relationships among elements of a language above the word level, that is, among words, phrases, clauses, and sentences. See Syntactic function.
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