Modes of Interpretation: Simultaneous and Consecutive

The simultaneous mode of interpreting is typically used when the person who requires an interpreter is not participating directly in the communication. Example: a defendant in a criminal trial listening to witness testimony. It is called simultaneous interpreting because the interpreter does not wait for the speaker to finish before beginning to translate into the other (or target) language, but rather interprets simultaneously, lagging at least a few words behind the speaker. In such cases the translation is usually unidirectional, i.e., from language A to language B but not vice-versa.

Interpretation is normally consecutive when the person requiring the interpreter participates directly in the communication, e.g., when testifying. In such cases the interpreter waits for the person to finish speaking, or until the amount of information approaches the limit of the interpreter's retention ability, and then gives a translation. Interpreters typically use note-taking as a memory aide, although the method and the degree of reliance on taking notes varies from one interpreter to another. Consecutive interpreting is usually bidirectional, i.e., from language A to B and vice-versa.

Using the Same Grammatical Person

Whether interpreting simultaneously or consecutively, properly trained interpreters will use the same grammatical person that the speaker uses in the source language. In other words, if the speaker says "my name is John" the interpreter will say "my name is John" in the target language, rather than "he says his name is John" or "his name is John." The main reason for this practice is practical: if you do otherwise, the pronoun references quickly become hopelessly confusing. Example: If you interpret "then he hit me" as "he says then he hit him" there is no way of telling who hit whom. (And an interpreter who introduces more confusion and ambiguity than there was in the original message is not doing a good job.)

By the same token, when you speak to someone through an interpreter, you should speak directly to her or him as though that person were speaking the same language as you, rather than speaking to the interpreter. If, for example, you were to look at the interpreter and say "what's his date of birth?", your interpreter would be justified in answering, "how should I know?"