Assessing lexical and syntactic simplification in translated English with entropy analysis

Zhongliang Wang, Andrew K. F. Cheung, Han Xu and Kanglong Liu ()
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Zhongliang Wang: Guangzhou Railway Polytechnic
Andrew K. F. Cheung: The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
Han Xu: The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
Kanglong Liu: The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Palgrave Communications, 2025, vol. 12, issue 1, 1-12

Abstract: Abstract This study investigates the lexical and syntactic complexity of translated and non-translated native English texts, with a particular focus on evaluating the simplification hypothesis in translation. Drawing on entropy as a quantitative measure rooted in information theory, we conduct a comparative analysis of two balanced corpora, each consisting of 500 texts, with a focus on how translation status and text type interact to shape informational complexity. The findings challenge the widely held assumption of universal simplification in translated texts. Contrary to expectations, translated English texts exhibit greater lexical complexity, as evidenced by higher wordform entropy, compared to native English texts. However, no significant differences emerge between the two groups in terms of syntactic complexity, as measured by part-of-speech entropy. These results contribute to the ongoing debate on translation universals, highlighting the nuanced nature of simplification as a construct. The study underscores the need to account for factors such as source language influence, translator’s native language, text genre, and translation direction in future research. Furthermore, the use of entropy provides a useful and consistent means of assessing text complexity, contributing to ongoing methodological developments in translation studies and related areas.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1057/s41599-025-05562-9

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