macOS 11 Big Sur Tip: How To Use Safari Translation

Apple has given the Safari browser excellent translation features in Big Sur. This feature works better than other translators such as Google Translate and makes browsing foreign websites easy. Here’s how to use Safari’s Translation feature.

Those who have a Mac device and want to enjoy the latest and greatest translation feature Apple has to offer should update to the new macOS version, macOS 11 Big Sur. The translation feature is accessible via Safari and works wonders for those who need to read foreign-language websites.

Safari Translation offers better features compared to other translators such as Google Translate. For one, Apple’s version works to translate every foreign word in every website, then replaces the original text shown on screen with the translated version. It won’t require users to copy and paste paragraphs of text to be translated. Also, the font and layout remain the same.

As mentioned, the feature works online, meaning that it needs an internet connection. It doesn’t have an offline mode like the Translate app in iOS 14. It will need to send the webpage to be translated to a server, translate the text there, then display translated text on the user’s screen. The webpage is discarded after translation.

At the time of Big Sur’s launch, the Safari Translation feature was only capable of translating between seven languages: English, Chinese, French, German, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian and Spanish. Apple might add more languages in the future, but at the moment, users are limited to these.

All that said, here’s how to use the Safari Translation feature:

• First, users should make sure to update their Mac device to macOS Big Sur.
• Second, users should launch Safari, then go to a foreign-language website.
• Third, Safari will notify users if it is able to translate the language used by the website. The words "Translation Available " will be shown instead of the URL. This will be accompanied by a translate icon, shown on the far right side.
• Fourth, users should click on the translate icon if it’s there, then choose Translate to English.

The feature will automatically and quickly translate any foreign word to English and display it on the screen, right where the foreign-language words are located. The feature will retain the font and layout so as to retain the same webpage design elements. The only thing that will change is the language.