| name | dbp-translator |
| metadata | {"author":"Chuah Kee Man"} |
| description | Translate English text into standard Bahasa Melayu following Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (DBP) conventions. Use this skill whenever the user asks to translate English to Malay, Bahasa Melayu, or BM, including formal documents, technical/academic content, creative writing, marketing copy, and everyday text. Also trigger when the user pastes English text and asks for a Malay version, says "translate this to BM", "terjemah", "tukar ke Bahasa Melayu", or any similar phrasing. This skill applies even for short phrases or single sentences — any English-to-Malay translation request should use it.
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English to Bahasa Melayu Translator (DBP Standard)
Translate English text into standard Bahasa Melayu that adheres to Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (DBP) conventions. The goal is fluent, natural-sounding Malay that a DBP editor would approve of — not stiff word-for-word substitution.
Core Principles
1. DBP Standard Malay Only
Always use standard Malaysian Malay as recognised by DBP. This means:
- Use Malaysian forms, never Indonesian variants. Common examples:
- kerana (not karena), bahagian (not bagian), mesyuarat (not rapat)
- maklumat (not informasi), perisian (not perangkat lunak)
- kakitangan (not karyawan), mengesyorkan (not merekomendasikan)
- hospital (not rumah sakit), kerajaan (not pemerintah)
- Follow standard DBP spelling conventions (Sistem Ejaan Rumi Baharu) for general compliance — e.g. syor not sor, kaji selidik not kajiselidik.
- Use DBP-approved terminology where it exists. When translating technical, scientific, or specialised terms, prefer the term found in Kamus Dewan or DBP's terminology databases (e.g. PRPM — Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu).
2. Natural, Fluent Translation
Translate for meaning and readability, not word-for-word. Good translation sounds like it was originally written in Malay.
- Restructure sentences where the English word order would sound awkward in Malay.
- Use appropriate Malay discourse markers and connectors (walau bagaimanapun, selain itu, justeru, namun begitu).
- Match the register of the source text — formal documents should sound formal in Malay; casual text should sound natural without being sloppy.
- For creative or marketing copy, prioritise impact and tone over literal accuracy. Adapt idioms and cultural references where a direct translation would fall flat.
3. Handling Uncertain or Novel Terms
Some terms — particularly in technology, pop culture, or very recent coinages — may not have an established DBP equivalent. When this happens:
- Still provide a translation using the best available Malay term or a reasonable calque/adaptation.
- Add a note in square brackets after the term, e.g.:
pengkomputeran awan [Nota: istilah DBP untuk "cloud computing"; penggunaan ini sudah diterima pakai]
- For genuinely novel terms with no clear DBP equivalent, note this explicitly:
tokenisasi [Nota: tiada padanan rasmi DBP setakat ini; "tokenisasi" digunakan secara meluas dalam bidang ini]
- Keep notes concise. They are there to flag uncertainty, not to provide a full linguistic essay.
4. Formatting and Structure
- Preserve the overall structure of the source text — headings, paragraphs, bullet points, numbered lists.
- However, feel free to adapt structure where it reads more naturally in Malay. For instance, an English sentence split across two bullet points might work better as a single flowing sentence in Malay, or vice versa.
- Maintain any emphasis (bold, italics) from the source.
- Do not translate proper nouns, brand names, or acronyms unless there is an established Malay equivalent (e.g. PBB for UN, AS for US).
Output Format
The user may request different output formats. Default to inline translation unless they ask otherwise.
Option 1: Inline Translation (default)
Simply provide the translated text. If there are flagged terms, the notes appear inline within the translation.
Option 2: Side-by-Side
Present the English source and Malay translation in parallel — either as a two-column table or alternating paragraphs clearly labelled EN and BM.
Option 3: Downloadable Document
If the user requests a file, create a .docx document containing the translation. For side-by-side documents, use a two-column table layout. Read the docx skill at /mnt/skills/public/docx/SKILL.md before creating any Word documents.
When the user doesn't specify a format, use inline translation and keep things clean and readable.
Register Guide
Adapt your Malay register to match the source material:
- Formal/official documents: Use full formal Malay. Avoid contractions or colloquialisms. Employ bahasa istana conventions where appropriate (e.g. formal surat rasmi phrasing).
- Technical/academic: Use precise DBP-approved terminology. Maintain academic tone. It's fine to keep internationally recognised technical terms in their original form if no DBP term exists, but flag them.
- Creative/marketing copy: Prioritise tone, rhythm, and persuasive impact. Adapt freely — the translation should feel right, not just be technically correct. Malay wordplay or cultural resonance is encouraged where it fits.
- General/everyday text: Natural, conversational standard Malay. Readable and clear without being overly stiff.
Common Pitfalls to Avoid
- False friends with Indonesian: Be vigilant. Words like polisi (Indonesian for "police") vs polis (Malaysian), or bisa (Indonesian "can") vs boleh (Malaysian) are easy traps.
- Over-borrowing English: Resist the temptation to keep English words when a perfectly good Malay equivalent exists. Use tetingkap not window (in computing), muat turun not download, kata laluan not password.
- Passive voice overuse: English formal writing often uses passive voice. Malay handles this differently — don't mechanically convert every English passive into a di- construction if an active sentence reads better.
- Literal idiom translation: "Break a leg" is not patahkan kaki. Find a Malay equivalent or convey the intended meaning naturally.
Example
English source:
The cloud-based platform enables seamless collaboration across distributed teams, leveraging AI-driven insights to boost productivity.
Malay translation (inline with notes):
Platform berasaskan pengkomputeran awan ini membolehkan kerjasama yang lancar dalam kalangan pasukan yang tersebar, dengan memanfaatkan cerapan dipacu kecerdasan buatan bagi meningkatkan produktiviti.
This reads naturally in Malay, uses DBP-compliant terms (pengkomputeran awan, kecerdasan buatan, cerapan), and restructures the sentence for Malay flow rather than mirroring English syntax.
