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1、Lexical Features and Translation of English Business Correspondence AbstractEnglish business correspondence plays an important role in foreign trade. In English business correspondence, the lexicon is a key aspect which can influence the effect of communication: This thesis is a study on lexical fea
2、tures and Translation of English business correspondence .Key words: English business correspondence; Lexical features; Translation摘要商务英语信函在对外贸易中起着很重要的作用。而在商务信函中，词汇又是影响交际效果的一个主要方面。本文是对商务英语信函的词汇特点及翻译展开的研究。关键词:商务英语信函； 词汇特征； 翻译IntroductionBusiness English is a very wide concept. On the one hand, it inc
3、ludes many fields, from the economic policies and legal regulations of governments to the correspondence, contract, agreement, documents and advertising of a certain transaction; everything concerning economic and trade is included (Wang Enmian 1993). On the other hand, because of the large variety
4、of business English, the styles are therefore rich, including legal styles, theoretical styles, journalistic styles, correspondence styles and advertising styles, etc. and correspondingly they have different language features (Zhang Delu, 1998:125). The formality of lexicon is an important feature o
5、f Busiriess English other than advertising English. Firstly, there are more formal and spoken words, which appears clumsy. Secondly, there are usually archaic words in legal texts to increase its solemnity and formality. Thirdly, due to large coverage of Business English, such as industry, trade and
6、 laws, the technical terms are also rich and complicated. Some of the terms have fixed meanings and some vary with the occasions. Fourthly, there are many borrowed words from other languages which can strengthen the formality, for example, re (Latin), force majeure (French). 1.Lexical features of En
7、glish business correspondenceThe most striking Lexical feature of business correspondence lies in its jargons, which refer to those words that can only be understood by the insiders involved in the field. Take the word “balance”,a polysemy,for example,it usually means 平衡 in Chinese, while it refers
8、to,more often than not,余额in business letters. That can be proved by the following sentence: The balance of $300 will be paid in one week. The meaning of“balance”obviously differs from that in the sentence: Riders need a good sense of balance.Moreover,most of the specific terms are fixed in form, exa
9、ct in meaning, and accurate in translation,which can be proved by these phrases:letter of credit(信用证),force majeure(不可抗力),All Risks(一切险),etc.Besides,some ordinary terms become specialized in business correspondence. For instance,“accept” denotes “willingly receive”(接受);however, it switches to the me
10、aning of “sign a bill of exchange to say that somebody promises to pay”(承兑),just like in the sentence “We request you to accept the draft drawn on you.”.The example will further demonstrate how this term turned into a specialized one: We have drawn on you at sight a draft for the invoice value to be
11、 collected through the Bank of China.Here,“collect”is not equal to 收集,but to 托收 instead. Another Lexical feature of business correspondence are possessed with consists in its conciseness. Specifically speaking,there exist numerous abbreviations in business writing to keep the letter brief. Four kind
12、s of abbreviations can be found in business correspondence, namely initialing, clipped word, blend, and acronym. Abounding in those words, business correspondence needs expertise. Some abbreviations as well as its corresponding translations are listed as follows: WTO for World Trade Organization (世界
13、贸易组织);B/L for Bill of Lading (提单);D/P for Document against Payment (付款交单) etc. 2.Technicals of translation2.1Convey the information of business correspondence accurately Accurately convey information of jargons in the business correspondence, in particular to the general terms described .For example
14、, “shipping advice” is “运输建议”rather than “已装船通知”。2.2Identifying the Normal Meaning and Technical Meaning No matter we do C-E or E-C translation, we cant just find the word from a dictionary. We should identify its technical meaning based on business English features. In business English, many words
15、have their special meanings. For example,1) Our company is ready to foot the bill.这笔费用我们公司愿意负担。 2) They missed the last bus, and had to fool it. 他们未赶上最后一班公共汽车，不得不走着去了。 As a noun, foot means “lowest part of the leg, below the ankle”. As a verb, it means “walk”. But in business English, it means “pay
16、somebody for something”.2.3Omission of Unnecessary Words In English language, the articles, pronouns and verbs sometimes only have the grammatical function. So, translators can omit those words if necessary. For example,1) Its a pleasure for us to offer you the goods as follows.非常荣幸向贵方报盘如下（omit “for
17、 us”）2) The purpose of insurance is to provide protection against financial loss at a reasonable cost.保险的目的是以合理的代价为经济损失提供保障。（omit “a and the”）2.4Adding Necessary Words Generally speaking, translators cant add or omit the meaning of the original expression. But it doesnt mean that translators cant ch
18、ange any word in the original text. As English and Chinese are two different kinds of languages. They have their own features. So, translators sometimes can add some words if necessary. But it should loyal to the original meaning. For example,1) The most successful manufacturers make it their busine
19、ss to understand consumer psychologyhow to use design, both in marketing and production, to make their products “speak” to the consumer.最成功的制造商总是把了解消费者心理，即在营销和生产中如何运用设计来让产品向消费者“表达情感”，作为职责。 If translating “speak to the consumer” literary into “向消费者说” doesnt suit the Chinese expression. While translat
20、ing it into “表达情感” will be much more suitable.References1Bilbow, Grahame T. (2001) Write for Modern Business. Beijing: Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press.business correspondence. 2Gan Hong，English for International Business Communication M.上海:上海科学技术文献出版社.1996，2-30.3徐静.科教创新 2009年第8期4彭 萍.实用商务文体翻译(英汉双向)M.中央编译出版社,2008.55叶玉龙等编著.商务英语汉译教程M.天津:南开大学出版社. 1998，88-96.6