Semantic Gaps in Bilingual Urdu to English and English to Urdu Dictionaries

Abstract

Bilingual dictionaries are quite popular among second
language learners all over the world for a variety of reasons; the
learners either consult these dictionaries to look for equivalents of the
words that they wish to learn in the target language, or consult them
when they face difficulty in comprehending the target language words
while reading a TL text. Bilingual dictionaries often give this impression
that there is an equivalent available in the target language for the words
of the source language. However, this is far from reality. The so called
equivalents provided for many words, particularly religious and culture
specific words, in such dictionaries are not equivalents in the true sense
and therefore pose problems for language users. Even if equivalents are
available, the ones provided in some bilingual dictionaries are not true
equivalents. In case of homonyms, for instance, only one meaning is
translated, whereas the other meanings are simply ignored. Besides this,
many equivalents that are provided carry huge semantic gaps. The paper
is an attempt to explore the nature and degree of semantic gaps found in
locally published Urdu to English and English to Urdu bilingual
dictionaries. The analysis of the data gathered from such dictionaries
reveals huge discrepancies in the meanings provided and the actual
meanings the words carry. The results of the study pose questions for the
translators and language learners in terms of the credibility of such
bilingual dictionaries.