How do I set up translation guidelines?

Translation guidelines tell the AI how to translate your content — the tone, style, and specific rules to follow. Think of them as a style guide for your translations.

Setting up guidelines

1. Go to your project → AI Context tab → Guidelines
2. Write your guidelines in the text area
3. Click Save

Guidelines are included in every AI translation request as part of the system prompt.

What to include

Tone and style

- Use informal "you" (e.g., Turkish: "sen" not "siz")
- Keep sentences short and direct
- Use active voice
- Maintain a friendly, professional tone

Product-specific rules

- Never translate the product name "Better i18n"
- "Dashboard" should remain "Dashboard" in all languages
- "Workspace" translates as "Çalışma Alanı" in Turkish

Formatting rules

- Preserve markdown formatting in translations
- Keep code snippets and variable names in English
- Maintain the same punctuation style as the source

Audience context

- Target audience: software developers
- Content type: product UI strings and documentation
- Reading level: technical but accessible

Example guidelines

Here's a complete example:

You are translating UI strings for a developer tool called "Better i18n".

Tone: Professional but friendly. Use informal address (tu/tú/sen).
Audience: Software developers who speak English as a second language.

Rules:
- Never translate: "Better i18n", "CDN", "API", "SDK", "CLI", "JSON"
- Keep technical terms in English when no standard translation exists
- Use the glossary for consistent terminology
- Match the length of the source text as closely as possible (UI space constraints)
- Preserve all markdown, HTML tags, and placeholders like {name} or {{count}}

Guidelines vs. glossary

Feature	Guidelines	Glossary
What	General rules and style	Specific term translations
Scope	Applies to all translations	Per-term enforcement
Format	Free-text instructions	Structured term → translation pairs
Best for	Tone, style, exceptions	Consistent terminology

Use both together for best results.

Next steps

• Manage your glossary
• How does AI translation work?