This page pulls together a bunch of Shakespeare translator resources from across the web to help you translate Shakespeare into modern English, and in some cases modern English to Shakespearean-style language.
Shakespeare wrote in early modern English, which means many of his words have evolved in their meaning over the last 400 years. At times this makes it difficult to fully understand his works…which is where sites like NoSweatShakespeare, and other Shakespeare translation sites come in. The resources below should help you understand Shakespeare at a much more granular level. If you’re aware of any other good translation tools, please do let us know in the comments section at the bottom of the page!
Shakespeare’s Words Translated:
- Shakespeare dictionary – find all of Shakespeare’s tricky words with an explanation in modern, simple English.
- Old EnglishTranslation allows you to translate words from old English (defined here as spoken between the 5th and 12th century in what is now England and Southern Scotland) to modern English, and vice versa. A straight-up English translator, highly recommended.
- ShakespeareWords.com is the online version of the well-known language companion, allowing you to search for any word or phrase in Shakespeare’s works to get its modern-day meaning, in their glossary.
Shakespeare’s Sentences and Phrases Translated:
- One of the few modern English to Shakespeare translators is LingoJam – type in your English and get fun translations into Shakespeare’s language.
- SpeakShakespeare claims to be a Shakespeare translator but the jury’s out as we’ve been unable to get any decent results from it.
Shakespearean English Translation Software:
- Want to translate Shakespeare on the go? This nifty app available from itunes is a Shakespeare translator for your iphone.
- Download Babylon Translation, a Shakespeare translator software that translates Shakespeare to English, but multiple languages.
And of course we have a whole lot of Shakespeare translation resources right here on NoSweatShakespeare!
- All about Shakespearean insults
Why was the English language so creative in Shakespeare’s time?
Shakespeare’s era was after old English and firmly in early modern English. Around this time there was a huge inflow of other European vocabularies into the English language as a result of Renaissance cross-pollination. This created new variations for English words, and allowed endless possibilities for Shakespeare.
In Love’s Labours Lost he is able to exploit multiple meanings of one word to create a sentence like ‘Light, seeking light, doth light of light beguile.’ – ‘intellect,’ ‘wisdom,’ ‘eyesight’ and ‘daylight’. (It’s worth checking out this article on Shakespeare original pronunciation to understand the ways in which Shakespeare used pronunciation as well as the words themselves to get his characters’ meaning across.)
This, by his voice, should be a Montague.
Fetch me my rapier, boy. What dares the slave
Come hither, cover’d with an antic face,
To fleer and scorn at our solemnity?
Now, by the stock and honour of my kin,
To strike him dead, I hold it not a sin.
O serpent heart, hid with a flow’ring face!
Did ever dragon keep so fair a cave?
Is this a dagger which I see before me, the handle toward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee: I have thee not, and yet I see thee still!
But, soft! What light through yonder window breaks?
I have been in such a pickle since I saw you last
What, drawn, and talk of peace! I hate the word
As I hate hell, all Montagues, and thee: Have at thee, coward!
Finally, it was the day for the show I had been looking forward to this moment for a week. I was going to go and watch Macbeth at the globe, I had tickets for the pit. When I got to the globe and sat on my seat, I heard a myriad of sound.
Suddenly, I heard a loud bang which sounded like lighting right then the whole theatre went quiet, I was amazed I had a cajole to scream so break the silence. But then the play started, three men dressed up as women came into the theatre and one of the men dressed up as a woman exclaimed, “When shall we three meet again? In thunder, lightning, or in rain?” I immediately knew that these men where the witches it was very strange for me as I had never watched a play so I had never seen men dressed up as women, when the witches said Macbeth’s name lots of people started throwin pies and oranges at the witches.
As the play carried on, I realised that there were no women actresses in the play, the play was amazing the protagonist and antagonist where so interesting to watch them perform their roles in the play.
But then I was completely gobsmacked when there was a scene where they used blood, I knew very well that tis blood was pigs’ blood but still it was astonishingly gruesome. Some of the pigs’ blood splattered on my shirt and on to the people who were next to me. By the end of the play the whole pit was covered in pigs’ blood and so was the stage. Some people threw pies at the antagonist when they did not like what was happening ion the play.
When the play was finished, I was completely in awe, I was traumatised, but amazed and felt a cajole of respect for Shakespeare. When I got home and I was asked by my mother how the play was I said it was amazing but I would not go again for a very very long time as it was amazing and horrific.
Two Households both alike in dignity
in fair Verona where we lay our scene
from ancient grudge, break to new mutiny,
where civil blood makes civil hands unclean:
from forth the fatal loins of these two foes,
a pair of star crossed lovers take their life:
whose misadventured piteous overthrows,
doth with their death bury their parents’ strife
Who chooseth me must give and hazard all he hath.
June 6th, 650 CE –
Dearest of diaries,
thou knoweth, I am a free and v’ry vocal peasant. The present-day I and the oth’rs in the “ moth’rs ‘gainst our l’rd” group did hold a clan riot. We just barely did manage to receiveth a l’rd’s attention at which hour the neighb’ring kingdom cameth to attacketh! our knights all hadst to sweaty haste into hurlyburly and thith’r w’re a lot of bloodsheds but our allies cameth in at the lasteth second and we wonneth the hurlyburly. Ev’ryone wast a joyous and che’ring. Anon, the pages did start attempting to moveth the dead bodies and crisp the blood off our streets so we couldst starteth celebrating, M.A.O.L (moth’rs ‘gainst our l’rd) did get so sidetrack’d with all the festival preparations yond at which hour the l’rd did approach us we w’re too did confuse to curtsy. That gent basically toldeth us “Good m’rrow fair maidens! I you’re dubiously humble, l’rd haveth a message to deliv’r has’t a message to deliv’r. Thou ladies has’t been stirring up ado in the village. Spitting out Banbury st’ries whence ev’r thou can if ‘t be true thou wilt beest falsing, prithee, did spread thy lies towards the people thee standeth with. Mistress, I has’t not the timeth to beest dealing with an uprising at which hour we has’t been dealing with neighb’rs attacking hath left and right. thee best be keeping to thyself if thou wants to keep using my grinder.” He was all Hufty-tufty.
More strange than true: I never may believe
These antique fables, nor these fairy toys.
Lovers and madmen have such seething brains,
Such shaping fantasies, that apprehend
More than cool reason ever comprehends.
The lunatic, the lover and the poet
Are of imagination all compact:
One sees more devils than vast hell can hold,
That is, the madman: the lover, all as frantic,
Sees Helen’s beauty in a brow of Egypt:
The poet’s eye, in fine frenzy rolling,
Doth glance from heaven to earth, from earth to heaven;
And as imagination bodies forth
The forms of things unknown, the poet’s pen
Turns them to shapes and gives to airy nothing
A local habitation and a name.
Such tricks hath strong imagination,
That if it would but apprehend some joy,
It comprehends some bringer of that joy;
Or in the night, imagining some fear,
How easy is a bush supposed a bear!