I have a 15-page English study guide in PDF format saved on my Android phone and I really need it translated into Sinhala. I tried copying and pasting the text manually, but the formatting gets completely ruined and the Sinhala script looks broken. Is there an easy way to translate the whole document directly on mobile while keeping the original layout?
I agree, that formatting problem is annoying. What I would try is opening the PDF in Google Drive, choosing to open it with Google Docs, then using the Translate document option to Sinhala. To be fair, the layout may need cleanup, especially with Sinhala script, but it avoids manual copying. If that falls short, the Google Translate app can handle pasted text, though it will not preserve the design.
On Android the easiest route is the Google Translate app. Open it, tap Documents, pick your PDF, set English to Sinhala, and it spits out a translated PDF with the layout mostly intact. If the Sinhala still looks broken, that’s a font issue in your viewer, so try opening the result in Google Drive instead of your default reader.
I’d open it in Microsoft Word on your phone, use Translate for the document, then save a new PDF, though tables may need a quick tidy-up. Use a font such as Noto Sans Sinhala if the letters look broken, and avoid copy-pasting page by page as that usually wrecks the layout.
Honestly, keeping the exact layout on a phone is difficult. In Chrome, request the desktop site and try Google Translate’s “Documents” option with a copy of the PDF; basic headings may survive, but tables will probably need fixing. Avoid repeated copying between apps, as that often breaks Sinhala characters and spacing.
@cameron2002 is spot on about the font issue! I see this al the time with my event schedules when missing fonts ruin the page margins. Google Drive usually handles those layout quirks much better on mobile. Do you use the regular Drive app or Docs for checking them?
@rando72836 I use the Docs app myself. I rename a copy of the original before opening it, so the master file stays safe. In Docs the missing font problem shows up less, and View mode keeps the margins tidy. For Sinhala, though, check that Noto Sans Sinhala is installed, or the letters stay broken.
Translating and keeping the exact layout on a phone is rough, Sinhala script plus PDF formatting just doesn’t survive copy paste well. I’d convert it to Word first with an app, then use Google Translate’s document upload feature, it handles the file instead of messy copied text.
if the PDF is scanned, run OCR first or the translator will miss a lot of text. i use PDFcap to convert it to an editable Word file, then translate the text and save a copy as PDF again. keeping the exact original layout with Sinhala is tough since the text length changes, but it should stay readable. is it a scanned guide or selectable text?