Placeholder占位符
A placeholder is a variable token inside a source string that is replaced by a value at runtime, such as a name, number, date, or link, and it often appears as a brace, percent sign, or numbered tag. In localization, placeholders must be preserved exactly and repositioned according to target-language grammar, because deleting or altering them can break the code or produce incorrect output.
Updated
Angel Translation editorial reference · Confirm the rendering against your source and approved project terminology.
Check source meaning → confirm the preferred term → record approved variants and references.
Where this term appears
Placeholders appear in software UI strings, error messages, email templates, and help content. Translators see them inside CAT tool segments, often protected by inline tags, and must move them to the grammatically correct position without changing their internal syntax. QA checks compare source and target placeholders to catch missing or reordered tokens.
Translation checks
A frequent mistake is translating the text inside a placeholder, such as changing {firstName} to {名字}, which then fails at runtime because the variable name no longer matches the code. Another error is dropping a placeholder when rewording a sentence, which produces an incomplete message or a broken UI element. Even changing placeholder order can alter meaning in languages with different case or agreement rules.
From reading to a project
Translate the message while preserving its token
Illustrative project reference · invented files
- Invented string ID
- DEMO-STATUS-01
- English source
- Pending items: {count}
- Illustrative Chinese
- 待处理项目：{count}
- Protected token
- {count} · supplied syntax stays unchanged
Review status: questions to confirm
Keep the supplied syntax
Identify protected tokens and escaping rules in the source format. The sample uses {count}; it is not a rule that every system uses braces.
Provide the complete message
Send the string ID and screen or message context. A token without the surrounding sentence does not show how the value will be used.
Agree a contextual check
Identify who checks the returned string in the intended build. Translation of a resource file does not itself prove correct software behavior.
Related published experience
Torex SemiconductorJapanese → Chinese
Japanese-to-Chinese documentation for a listed Japanese semiconductor manufacturer.
The Torex case concerns Japanese-to-Chinese semiconductor documents. It is separate technical-document experience and does not establish software localization or validation of this invented string.
Send the resource export, protected-token instructions, stable string IDs, context and the intended Chinese review format.
Keep the term aligned across your files
Creative and consumer content needs accurate meaning as well as tone and context. Subtitles, interfaces and voice scripts also require checks for timing, character limits and pronunciation.
Provide approved terms and previous translations with the source files. Agree how variants, ambiguous wording and revisions will be reviewed. Terminology maintenance and any termbase handback are confirmed in the project scope. See the 8-step AI + expert workflow.
Working on content globalization documentation?
Include the source and target languages, file types, intended use, deadline and any approved termbase. Agree handling before sending sensitive files. Acknowledged in 4 hours, quoted in 24.
Prepare a Chinese string-file brief →Content Globalization solutions →File handling →A glossary entry is not an official standard or evidence of regulatory acceptance. Confirm current requirements for your project separately.